Police who deliberately baited motorcyclists to break the law then
fined them have been exposed in a recent court case, leading to a
magistrate describing the police as ''reckless''.
The finding could pave the way for scores of other riders caught using similar tactics to reclaim demerit points and fines.
The operation featured in the case took place on September 16 and 23
last year in a section of the Old Pacific Highway between Mount White
and Brooklyn. The Ku-ring-gai highway patrol issued 68 tickets, all to
motorbike riders.
Brothers Rod and James Ward were booked for crossing the road's double
dividing lines. They were each fined $298 and lost three points. James
said they had been on a casual ride when, ''in a flurry of dust and
gravel'', a grey SUV pulled out in front of them, then sped up and
slowed down several times. ''People were moving around inside the
vehicle and there was a commotion going on in there and we didn't really
know what was going on,'' he said. ''I thought initially it was some
tourists who had been lost.''
He said the vehicle moved to the left ''as if to beckon us past'' so
they overtook the SUV - an unmarked police car - by crossing to the
wrong side of the road.
From inside the SUV, officers filmed the riders then radioed a patrol car down the road with their licence plate details.
The brothers described the incident as a case of police ''entrapment''
and challenged the fines in court, along with three other riders booked
for the same offence.
While the defence of ''entrapment'' does not exist in Australia, their
barrister argued the police acted improperly and that any evidence
against the riders was inadmissible. The riders told the court they
felt safer overtaking the undercover vehicle than following it as it
veered across the lane. The officers involved denied the undercover
vehicle was driven unsafely.
Magistrate Eve Wynhausen disagreed, describing their driving as
''erratic'' and said it had caused each of the riders to break the law.
''I am satisfied on the evidence that the driving had some influence on
the actions of the defendants and that … they would not have committed
the offences were it not for the way the covert vehicle was being driven
on both those days.''
The case against the riders was dismissed. Ms Wynhausen criticised
senior officers involved, saying their behaviour fell ''far short'' of
the NSW Police Code of Conduct and Ethics.
A police statement said a standard review would be conducted into the
failed court case and police would continue to target dangerous driver
behaviour.
The brothers said they had been contacted by dozens of riders who had also been booked.
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