A dying man has been prosecuted in a controversial fast-track court for not having insurance on his defunct van in the weeks after being told his life was ending.
The 66-year-old received a conviction earlier this month after the DVLA pursued a case against him through the beleagured Single Justice Procedure.
The man, from Market Drayton in Shropshire, detailed his battle with a chronic respiratory condition in a letter to the court, and revealed that he spent four months in hospital over the summer.
But the letter was not seen by DVLA prosecutors – who could have withdrawn the case – due to the fast-track set-up of the Single Justice Procedure, a courts process introduced a decade ago to cut costs.
In his letter, he wrote: “I am in poor health and have been for a number of years with chronic COPD. As a result, I have spent a considerable amount of time in hospital.
“At Easter this year, I was diagnosed with End of Life stage. Consequently I was in no fit state, either physically or mentally, to comply with the insurance requirements for my van.
“Since then, I have been in hospital for 4 months as well as other shorter stays.”
According to court papers, the DVLA said the van did not comply with legal insurance requirements on April 16, and a prosecution was commenced in September when a fixed penalty notice was not paid.
As well as detailing his lengthy stays away from home in hospital, the man also said the van has been parked on his drive “for the last few years but not driven”.
“A scrap merchant came to my door and offered to dispose of it. I was happy to let it go and apologise most sincerely for not being fit enough to follow through with the correct procedures.”
He said that his doctors could be contacted for confirmation and further evidence, and added: “I apologise for overlooking the formal requirements but my health issues have been overwhelming.”
It is the latest case of harsh justice administered through the Single Justice Procedure, a process the government has said is “under review”.
On Wednesday, The Standard’s long-running investigation into the process revealed the case of a pensioner who was prosecuted and convicted for £20 of unpaid car tax.
His son set out how his father’s eyesight is fading, his mental health has declined, and he has struggled to cope in the wake of his wife’s death from cancer, but this information was not enough to stop the prosecution.
Single Justice Procedure hearings take place in private, with a magistrate dealing with cases based on written evidence alone. There is no prosecutor in the room.
Magistrates have the power to refer any Single Justice Procedure case to open court for further detailed consideration, or to send the case back to the prosecuting body for a consideration if it is in the public interest.
Magistrates can also imposed a discharge – as happened to the dying man in Market Drayton – which avoids further financial penalties, but still leaves a defendant with a criminal conviction.
The Ministry of Justice has said it is looking at ways that vulnerable defendants can be better supported when charged with minor crimes.
The DVLA says prosecution is a last resort, and now urges defendants to contact them directly “if there are mitigating circumstances we need to know about”.
In March, the Magistrates Association set out a 12 point plan for Single Justice Procedure reform, including a requirement that prosecutors review all mitigation documents before a case is finally dealt with.
The body, which represents magistrates across England and Wales, said its members feel under-trained for the fast-track court system, they are sometimes rushed into decisions, and want increased transparency in the process.
