A driver has apologised after he went through a red light 1.2 seconds too late, which he believed was due to letting an ambulance pass. Retired Frank Wallington, of Walsall, was driving home after attending his cousin's funeral in Long Bennington when he said he saw an ambulance with flashing blue lights approaching.
He claimed he allowed the ambulance to pass and thought nothing more of it until he received a notice that he had gone through the traffic light junction at Cropwell Road on the A52 after they had changed red. The 76-year-old said he remembered slowing down to let an ambulance pass during the two hour journey, and, after seeing the image of his car going through a red light behind an ambulance, thought this was that incident.
However, ANPR evidence has since shown that the ambulance photographed was not fitted with emergency blue lights and that Mr Wallington's recollection of letting an ambulance pass was actually a completely separate event, with the ambulance in the photograph of him going through the lights being a coincidence. Mr Wallington explained: "We knew that on our long journey back from Long Bennington that on our journey home that we had allowed an ambulance through to pass us.
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"When we got this prosecution notice my wife and sister and I assumed that was the situation, especially when we saw the photo. However, the police have looked at the ANPR and the ambulance in this photo is a transporter ambulance and it's not fitted with blue lights, so I've had to hold my hands up and say I'm sorry, this is not the situation that we actually assumed it was."
He explained that the ambulance they did let through "did have blue lights" but it was "not related" to his passing through the red light. Mr Wallington added: "We remember letting an ambulance through as whenever we see flashing blue lights on an ambulance my wife and I always say best of luck mate for whoever it is, so we remember that, but this wasn't the one.
"I honestly can't remember where on this journey, as it's a two hour journey from Long Bennington to Walsall. They have actually looked at all the ANPR evidence in the area, which they keep for a year, which suggests there was only one other ambulance in the area at that time and that was an emergency ambulance, but whether that was the one we let through we have no idea."
After initially receiving his initial, Mr Wallington vowed to fight the fine and was told that he must appear at Nottingham Magistrates' Court to dispute the punishment. But following the recent development he has now accepted the punishment.
Mr Wallington described the whole situation as "extremely embarrassing" and has since "written a letter to the Magistrates' Court and said I apologise to the court, the police and the CPS." However, he has also explained that the situation has been "dragged on" as if a simple ANPR check was all that was needed to search the number plate and determine the ambulance had no blue lights, it could have been sorted months ago.
He was shocked that the "police have spent all this time and resources" just to run the registration number and show it's got no blue lights. The 76-year-old said: "That's all they needed to say as my memory of the event was that we let an ambulance through with blue flashing lights, all they had to say was the ambulance in the photo has no flashing lights and that would have been the end of it and we could have had a decision made last year.
"I can't argue with the camera and the fact that I went through 1.2 seconds too late, but I thought I had mitigating circumstances." He added: "The volume of paperwork generated by the Police and CPS just to prove this vehicle had no emergency lights plus ANPR data is rather baffling and, in my view a waste of resources.
"I had a bundle of evidence that didn't arrive until last Thursday. It was posted second class to me, so had I had a legal representative he would have only have had a day and a half last Friday and half of Thursday to look at the evidence and paperwork."
Earlier this month he also received confidential paperwork relating to someone else's court case as a mistake, and was disappointed in the court system's error.
A court hearing took place on Monday, April 17, to decide on the outcome after Mr Wallington had initially appealed his fine not realising the event he remembered and incident photographed were two separate events. He was found guilty of driving through a red light.
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