Has England really become this ridiculous?

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Your constantly bang on about is not going make it true..

Correct, Francis. I can say that 5 + 5 = 10 any number of times
and my saying so will not make it true.

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I've not seen, in my whole life, a man needing a gun for self-defense,
in my usual European environment...

I 'll take your word for it.

I have never seen a man get hit by a car in my whole life,
but I do not dispute that it has happened.

How about u ?

A jury found him guilty but he will not be sentenced until December.
It is possible that the penalty will not be imposed if the judge is allowed to consider the unusual circumstances.

(It sounds like he only technically broke the law, but did nothing criminal.)

I have never seen a man get hit by a car in my whole life,
but I do not dispute that it has happened.

How about u ?

Yes, it seems to be more to it..

I've been reading here and it appears to be a lot more controversial..

It was a lot more controversial because the original article
didn't include all the details and the weird behavior of the guy, as many other posters noticed..

If he will spend a few years in prison,
it will give him time to contemplate the wisdom of trusting police.

if he did not wish to keep it for his own use,
or to just throw it in the garbage if he did not.

Man accused of attacking DVLA inspector with broom walks free
(This Is Surrey Today, September 29, 2008)

A man accused of beating a DVLA inspector with a broom handle as walked free from court after claiming his alleged victim had exaggarated the incident.

Inspector Hayden Hart had claimed he was attakced my Paul Clarke, 26, as he patrolled Wood Street, Merstham, checking parked cars for out-of-date tax discs.

The inspector said he was clubbed repeatedly by his attacker, who warned him: "If you come near my vehicle again, I'll break your f****** legs."

But Mr Clarke, of Wood Street, Merstham, walked free from the Crown Court at Guildford after winning his appeal against conviction for assault by beating at Redhill Magistrates Court on March 12 this year.

Mr Clarke, 26, of Nailsworth Crescent, Merstham, denied the offence, insisting he had never actually struck Mr Hart during the confrontation on June 12 last year (2007).


The court was told that Mr Hart was driving along Wood Street stopping to inspect parked vehicles to make sure that they were displaying valid vehicle excise licenses.

Giving evidence at the appeal hearing, Mr Hart said: "I had seen four vehicles which I was going to report for not having up-to-date tax discs."

He said he was inside his Honda filling out the appropriate forms when he heard a loud bang on his window and looked up to see a young man.

Mr Hart said: "He was carrying a broom stick without the head on the end of it."

He said the man appeared very aggressive and threatened violence against him.

"As I got out of my car to ask him what he was doing, he struck me on the arm two or three times with the handle," he said.

Mr Hart said he grabbed hold of the stick and there was a scuffle before the other man walked off.

He said he suffered extensive bruising on his arm and had to have time off work because he felt so shaken by the incident.

"I felt very depressed," he said.

However, under cross-examination by defence counsel Richard McConaghy, he admitted the bruises might have been caused when he had leapt out of his vehicle to see what was going on.

Mr Clarke said he had confronted Mr Hart because he thought he had seen him trying to steal something from his pick-up truck.

"I didn't realise he was a DVLA inspector. He might have been a prolific thief," he said.

He said he had the broom because he had been sweeping up some glass in the road - and the head, which was loose, had fallen off during the fracas.

Mr Clarke accused Mr Hart of exaggerating his injuries, adding: "I reckon he wanted some time off work and compensation."

After the court was told that it was not possible to prove that the bruising to Mr Hart's arm had actually been caused by Mr Clarke, prosecuting counsel Laurence Aiolfi applied to have the offence changed from assault by beating to one of common assault.

But the judge, Mr. Recorder Stuart Lawson-Rogers, refused to agree to this - allowing Mr Clarke's appeal to succeed.

If he will spend a few years in prison,
it will give him time to contemplate the wisdom of trusting police.

I have a hard time believing that you could have been a lawyer, David.

Was it in another life?

He will not spend years in prison for this kind of offense.

It was not the police that was not to be trusted but the justice..

Several posters mentioned that there must be something more to this.
What about Clarke's previous trouble in 2007? (see news story that I posted above)

wandeljw wrote:

Several posters mentioned that there must be something more to this.
What about Clarke's previous trouble in 2007? (see news story that I posted above)

Please explain the connection.
What does this have to do with hitting anyone with a broom ??

OmSigDAVID wrote:

wandeljw wrote:

Several posters mentioned that there must be something more to this.
What about Clarke's previous trouble in 2007? (see news story that I posted above)

Please explain the connection.
What does this have to do with hitting anyone with a broom ??

I thought it was odd that the local police arrested him in the first place. However, the local police is surely aware of his 2007 attack on a parking regulator.

September 29, 2008
A man accused of beating a DVLA inspector with a broom handle as walked free from court after claiming his alleged victim had exaggarated the incident.
Inspector Hayden Hart had claimed he was attakced my Paul Clarke, 26, as he patrolled Wood Street, Merstham, checking parked cars for out-of-date tax discs.
The inspector said he was clubbed repeatedly by his attacker, who warned him: "If you come near my vehicle again, I'll break your f****** legs."
But Mr Clarke, of Wood Street, Merstham, walked free from the Crown Court at Guildford after winning his appeal against conviction for assault by beating at Redhill Magistrates Court on March 12 this year.

November 12, 2009
A former soldier who handed a discarded shotgun in to police faces at least five years imprisonment for "doing his duty".
Paul Clarke, 27, was found guilty of possessing a firearm at Guildford Crown Court on Tuesday " after finding the gun and handing it personally to police officers on March 20 this year.

Here is something of a timeline:

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September 29, 2008
A man accused of beating a DVLA inspector with a broom handle
as walked free from court after claiming his alleged victim had
exaggarated the incident.
Inspector Hayden Hart had claimed he was attakced my Paul
Clarke, 26, as he patrolled Wood Street, Merstham, checking
parked cars for out-of-date tax discs.
The inspector said he was clubbed repeatedly by his attacker,
who warned him: "If you come near my vehicle again,
I'll break your f****** legs."
But Mr Clarke, of Wood Street, Merstham, walked free from
the Crown Court at Guildford after winning his appeal against
conviction for assault by beating at Redhill Magistrates Court
on March 12 this year.

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November 12, 2009
A former soldier who handed a discarded shotgun in to police
faces at least five years imprisonment for "doing his duty".
Paul Clarke, 27, was found guilty of possessing a firearm
at Guildford Crown Court on Tuesday " after finding the gun and
handing it personally to police officers on March 20 this year.

In September 2008, Paul Clarke wins appeal of his conviction for
assaulting a "DVLA inspector". Six months later (March 2009) he
walks into a police station to turn in a gun and is arrested on a technicality.