Police driver is cleared

Press, 25 September 1987, Page 13

Police driver is cleared

The possibility of faulty traffic lights at the intersection of Durham Street and St Asaph Street having contributed to a fatal accident involving a police constable driving a police car, and another motorist, was raised in the District Court yesterday. The constable involved, Phillip George Heenan, aged 22, no longer faces a fatal driving and other charges arising from the collision.

After an application by the police for charges against the constable to be withdrawn, Judge Guest acceded to submissions by defence counsel, Mr K. N. Hampton, that the charges should be dismissed. Heenan had denied the four charges, which were to have been heard at a defended fixture in November. The charges were of careless driving causing the death of Linda Tranter, careless driving causing injury to Marie Whiteside and Ngarita Jacobs, and failing to comply with traffic lights. As well as having the charges dismissed, Heenan was granted $5OO costs, to be paid by the Justice Department from the Consolidated Fund.

Granting these costs after submissions by Mr Hampton for the award of costs, above the normal scale, the Judge said there was no question that the police had acted properly in all respects in the matter.

However, it would be unjust if at this late stage the defendant was left to pay the entire cost of a defence which had, in fact, led to a situation where the charges were now dismissed. Mr D. J. L., Saunders, a Crown solicitor, appeared for the police and sought the withdrawal of all charges. He said they followed a fatal accident at this intersection in the early morning of May 30. A thorough investigation had been made to establish the culpability of the drivers involved, both of whom claimed they were crossing the intersection with the green light in their favour. Mr Saunders traversed aspects of the investigation and referred to. reports of malfunction of the lights on other occasions. The state of the evi-

aence was such that there was a conflict which could not be resolved by scientific analysis.

A traffic officer had reported a problem with the lights; the city engineers’ department maintained the lights could not show green in both directions at the same time, Mr Saunders said. The evidence was such that it could not be established beyond doubt whether both drivers had green lights in their favour; and the guilt of either driver could not be established, said Mr Saunders, seeking the dismissal of the charges. Mr Hampton then successfully sought the charges to be dismissed, and costs to be awarded to Heenan. He said there had been no independent evidence about the traffic lights phase at the time of the collision.

However, he detailed the results of investigations into the matter, including a statement from a person of encountering the traffic lights showing green for both sets of traffic at the same intersection, some six weks after the collision.

Mr Hampton said he accepted that the Crown solicitor had “fairly, readily and speedily” given advice to the police which led to their seeking withdrawal of the charges. However, Heenan had incurred quite considerable costs in investigation, and legal costs. Costs of $340 had been incurred so far, apart from solicitor’s costs, Mr Hampton said.