Dumb And Dumberer...

Lots of comment last week on ‘Gatesgate’ with the CiF crowd desperate to prove, via their plethora of articles on it, that in the US, a black man just can’t get a break, while wiser heads pointed out that this was more a case of a mouthy wackademic being treated exactly the same way a white mouthy wackademic would be if they smarted off to the police in that manner.

It was then all made even more delicious by the bumbling of Obama and the hapless way he attempted to cover up his own knee-jerk racism in assuming a black man couldn’t possibly be at fault. Mark Steyn sums up the affair in his own inimitable style.

And here’s a case from the UK that illustrates police chippyness about their authority being questioned isn’t confined to the US, and is just as raceblind, with the case of Mr Tsakanikas who was nicked for driving at 5mph in Cambridge:

Its case hinged on police claims that Mr Tsakanikas had been staging a go-slow protest after being moved on when he parked on double yellow lines by a full taxi rank.

Hmmm, seems like an open and shut case.

PC Steve Hinks told the court: 'The taxi was moving very slowly, at about 5mph. I believe he was being inconsiderate.

'I felt it was a mini-protest to be moved off and there was a huge queue of traffic around him. I thought it was bringing the city to a halt.'

Oh, dear. Seems Mr Tsakanikas is bang to ri…

Oh:

Mr Tsakanikas was pulled over on February 2, when the country was being blanketed by the heaviest snowfall for 18 years, causing numerous road accidents, train delays, school closures, and the cancellation of 120 flights at Stansted Airport.

Police were also advising motorists to 'drive to the conditions of the roads and allow enough time for their journey'.

Whoops!

That, PC Hinks, is Motorist Persecution FAIL!

The taxi driver, understandably, isn’t happy:

He has now accused Cambridgeshire Police of a 'ridiculous waste of taxpayers' money' after waiting five months for the case to be heard in court - during which he feared he might lose his licence - only for it to be thrown out in less than an hour.
'It was dark and snow and sleet was falling, so I decided to drive at a sensible speed. It was a very busy place, with lots of people crossing the road,' said Mr Tasakanikas after his acquittal.

How on earth did this ever even look like a case that the police could win?

After all, even the prosecution witnesses thought it was a non-starter:

…two prosecution witnesses refused to speak out against Mr Tsakanikas, who has been a taxi driver for six years.

Bus drivers Neale Greaves and Gillian McCrae both said they had not been delayed by his slow crawl on the slippery streets.

Madness!

All because of a cop’s belief he was being taunted…

Mark Wallace, of the TaxPayers' Alliance, today branded the court case 'ludicrous'.

'This case should never have started in the first place and never have reached such an advanced stage,' he added.

'It is a waste of taxpayers' money. The money should have been spent on real police work.

You would think, wouldn’t you, that in the middle of a blizzard, PC Hinks could find plenty of idiots driving too fast, without lights, etc.

What were the CPS thinking?

The CPS today defended its decision to pursue the case, although it refused to release CCTV footage of the incident.
A spokeswoman said: 'The case was reviewed in accordance with the code of Crown prosecution and the lawyer was satisfied it was in the public interest.

Ah. The usual ‘we followed procedure’ robotic drone…

And Cambridge Police?

A Cambridgeshire Police spokesman added: 'We gather the evidence and with the help of the CPS present it to the court. We respect the court's decisions.'

Heh! Got no choice, really, have you?