wtf?
The Road Traffic Act gives the police the power to stop a vehicle being driven on the road or public place, they don't need a 'good reason'. Why on earth would you think that was assault?
A judge ruled that officers cannot just stop someone without good cause and even went as far as to say that it was assault.
My point is that it wasn't unlawful to be stopped, but it is unlawful for him to be detained.
"POWERS TO STOP, SEIZE, REMOVE AND SEARCH
Where a constable in uniform has reasonable grounds for believing that a motor vehicle is being (or has been) used on any occasion in a manner which
(a) contravenes section 3 or 34 of the Road Traffic Act 1988 (careless and inconsiderate driving, and prohibition of off-road driving),
and
(b) is causing (or has caused), or is likely to cause, alarm, distress or annoyance to members of the public, he may make use of the powers set out in section 59 of the Police Reform Act 2002.
These powers are:
(a) to order the person driving the vehicle to stop,
(b) to seize and remove the vehicle,
(c) to enter, for the purposes of (a)/(b), any premises (including a garage adjoining a house, but excluding the house itself) on which he has reasonable grounds for believing the vehicle to be,
and
(d) to use reasonable force, if necessary, in the exercise of the powers listed in (a) – (c) above.
A constable must not seize a motor vehicle in the exercise of the powers conferred on him by section 59 unless
(a) he has warned the person appearing to him to be the person whose use falls within section 59 that he will seize it if that use continues or is repeated,
and
(b) it appears to him that the use has continued or been repeated after the warning. "
So they couldn't just seize the vehicle. They would have to give a warning first and justify why they thought he was driving dangerously.
I've just read that invalid carriages and electrically assisted cycles are exempted from section 34. Does that mean that they can't be charged with dangerous driving?
Anyway, Police have something called radio, to which they would have to inform their control that they are attending, so common sense would tell you that if an officer was turning up, another 4 was totally unnecessary.
The statement:
"“They threatened to arrest me for dangerous driving, add three points to my provisional driving licence, tow away the scooter and fine me £110”, he says."
Is strange seeing as the fine that can be levied is only £30 by the constables. For a larger fine, the court would have to levy that.
Sounds like they were either very poorly informed police or PCSOs.
