Being a witness…

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… has anyone done this?

I witnessed an accident where a car crashed into a parked lorry at high speed. I was the 1st person there as it happened right next to me. Anyway, both occupants were found to have been drinking, the passenger died a day later and the driver is on bail. I had to give a statement before I could leave the scene, I also spent a good few hours at the police station yesterday going through and adding to my statement. I wrote some notes down when I got in after the crash, and showed them to the police officer yesterday. He said these would be “exhibit a”. this made me think that it may go to court and seeing as I was the 1st person there and saw the actual crash, they’ll be asking me to do the witness thing.

Am a little worried, do I have to do it, if so, how bad can it be?

― not-goodwin (not-goodwin), Wednesday, 2 November 2005 16:06 (nineteen years ago)

I think they can make you appear as you've already made a statement. Why would you not want to do it though? Having said that if the car driver crashed into a parked lorry & then died, surely there wouldn't be a charge to answer. Lots of lorry drivers sleep in their cabs, so I guess they're allowed to drink providing they don't drive their lorries.

― Panther Pink (Pinkpanther), Wednesday, 2 November 2005 16:35 (nineteen years ago)

pink, did you read that? :-)

― not-goodwin (not-goodwin), Wednesday, 2 November 2005 16:39 (nineteen years ago)

It's a bit muddled perhaps, but hey you don't want my muddled thoughts, don't start a thread! *sticks finger up*

― Panther Pink (Pinkpanther), Wednesday, 2 November 2005 16:48 (nineteen years ago)

i'm not sure how it works in the UK, but in the US there could well be two trials (if the driver pleads innocent, that is - if the driver pleads guilty there's no trial at all) - one by the state vs. the driver for the criminal charge of manslaughter or whatever, and one by the family of the person who was killed vs. the driver, for a civil charge resulting in the driver paying a sum of money. in the US, the first case - the criminal case brought by the state - would go through a "grand jury" in which you would testify before a room of about 16 people. the driver wouldn't be there, and the defense lawyer wouldn't be there, it would just be 16 random people and a district attorney, and based on your testimony and that of others, the grand jury would determine if there was enough evidence for the state to bring a case against the driver.*

* i think this is all correct but i could be wrong

― Tracer Hand (tracerhand), Wednesday, 2 November 2005 16:50 (nineteen years ago)

Is there any chance the driver won't plead guilty? He's going down a a few years anyway but presumably it'll be fewer if he confesses all.

As for being a witness, can you think of any reason or way in which your evidence can be challenged?

― Markelby (Mark C), Wednesday, 2 November 2005 16:51 (nineteen years ago)

Ahhh the passenger died not the driver, must learn to read! *withdraws finger* ;-)

― Panther Pink (Pinkpanther), Wednesday, 2 November 2005 17:03 (nineteen years ago)

Driver said at time" i don't know who other person is & i wasn't driving". Everything in my statement is correct, right down to the time. They could challenge my statement, but there are other witnesses that saw the driver before he came round and got out of the car.

Pink don’t be like that, I wasn’t patronising you. :-(

― not-goodwin (not-goodwin), Wednesday, 2 November 2005 17:10 (nineteen years ago)

Aww you I was messing, seriously I was. My posts are all muddled & jumbled at the moment. Didn't you see my post just above yours?!!

― Panther Pink (Pinkpanther), Wednesday, 2 November 2005 17:17 (nineteen years ago)

"i don't know who other person is & i wasn't driving"

that sounds very shoot-downable in court. testify against this asshole.

― Tracer Hand (tracerhand), Wednesday, 2 November 2005 17:21 (nineteen years ago)

The sad thing about it is the guy who died lived round the corner from the accident. It was outside Unicorn in Chorlton, Manchester if anyone knows it.

― not-goodwin (not-goodwin), Wednesday, 2 November 2005 17:27 (nineteen years ago)

eight years pass...

I was upstairs in Costa Coffee this afternoon reading a book when a guy came haring out of the staff area carrying a bag full of money with one of the baristas in hot pursuit. He ran right past me, down the stairs and out. Apparently he'd managed to get past the key-pad locked door and break into the safe and was cleaning it out when he got interrupted. It was an interesting lesson in the psychology of being an eye witness as, although i looked right at him, about ten minutes later i couldn't honestly tell the police what he was wearing. They didn't catch him and didn't have any security footage so the chances of me having to actually give evidence or a formal statement are fairly remote. It's rather frightening how useless i, or any of the other people in the cafe who saw it, would be if we'd seen a more serious crime.

― Ramnaresh Samhain (ShariVari), Thursday, 30 January 2014 21:32 (eleven years ago)

ten months pass...

attempted vehicular murder, first responder. fucked.

― local eire man (darraghmac), Tuesday, 16 December 2014 15:22 (ten years ago)

Jesus. Was this Dublin?

― Wristy Hurlington (ShariVari), Tuesday, 16 December 2014 15:36 (ten years ago)

this might be obvious but write your memories down as soon as you can while they are as accurate as possible

― Chairman Feinstein (nakhchivan), Tuesday, 16 December 2014 15:39 (ten years ago)

fender bender turned fucking crazy. guy carried on bonnet at speed down Parnell st before driver swerved to crush him into bollards, then took off.

amazed the other guy was alive when I got to him but he was responding by the time the ambulance took him away.

― local eire man (darraghmac), Tuesday, 16 December 2014 15:40 (ten years ago)

xp yeah I'm doing so. fucking horrible scene.

― local eire man (darraghmac), Tuesday, 16 December 2014 15:41 (ten years ago)

Damn, man.

― Ned Raggett, Tuesday, 16 December 2014 15:45 (ten years ago)

brb ive an exam now :/

― local eire man (darraghmac), Tuesday, 16 December 2014 15:46 (ten years ago)

Damn. Hope the guy pulls through. Sorry you have to deal with this shit.

― how's life, Tuesday, 16 December 2014 15:54 (ten years ago)

Obvs not the first thing on your mind but if you feel your exam performance was impaired in any way it's often worth writing a letter to the board to highlight what happened.

― Wristy Hurlington (ShariVari), Tuesday, 16 December 2014 17:47 (ten years ago)

that would be rank opportunism tbh

― local eire man (darraghmac), Tuesday, 16 December 2014 19:50 (ten years ago)

Not if you were in shock, which would be understandable In the circumstances. Compared to some of the ridiculous excuses I get sent, it would be perfectly valid. Hope it went ok, though.

― Wristy Hurlington (ShariVari), Tuesday, 16 December 2014 19:55 (ten years ago)

your brain will not take dictation on this, deems. it will veer around on its own.

― oh no! must be the season of the rich (Aimless), Tuesday, 16 December 2014 19:58 (ten years ago)

work want me to take tomorrow off but that sounds awful. i had a really rough hour in the apt on my own today and I'd rather be busy. nothing on news sites about this yet, just hoping the guy was ok at this stage.

― local eire man (darraghmac), Tuesday, 16 December 2014 22:23 (ten years ago)

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