A recent article on The Daily Mail brought to the general attention the encouraging story of a 21-year-old Brit, Dale Lyle, who was charged with speeding although his car wasn't even able to reach the legal limit. Obviously dissatisfied with the unfair sentence, the young man decided to prove his innocence by showing that his 14-year-old Honda Civic has a top speed of 85 mph, while he was accused of driving at almost 100 mph on the motor-way.
“The video evidence the CPS sent me was just appalling. They are just picking on innocent motorists. It makes you wonder how many people say, 'Fine, give me the points', when they are not guilty,” Lyle confessed. “I was in total disbelief when I opened the letter. I've never driven my car over the speed limit, let alone at 98 mph. It's such a small car I wouldn't feel safe,“ he added.
Although he told the magistrates that the car was too ancient to reach that speed, they just didn't let him get away without actually proving it. Unfortunately, Lyle had sold the car to a friend for £600 so, he had to take a bank overdraft to take it back. Afterwards, he paid an independent driving expert another £600 to test the car's top speed at a circuit in Bedfordshire. Finally, he managed to show the court the results: the Honda could only reach a top speed of 85.4 mph in fourth gear and 81.3 mph in fifth.
Judging after the mobile speed-camera footage, Lyle believes his vehicle was mistaken for another as the film shows three other cars in the frame at the same time on the A3, near Plymouth. With all that evidence, charges were dropped, but the price paid to prove his innocence was higher than the speeding ticket itself. If Dale Lyle had accepted the charges, he would have paid a maximum £1,000 fine and he would have been banned from driving for six months.
Therefore, the daring young man is planning to return to court to seek compensation for the £1,200 he spent.
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