Driver Swerves to Nearly Hit Police, Drives Away

Mimi Nguyen Ly
By Mimi Nguyen Ly
August 20, 2018World News
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A police officer on a motorcycle was nearly hit by a motorist who appeared to deliberately swerve into his path. The officer’s body camera footage from the Aug. 17 incident shows how close he came to collision.

The officer was on road policing duty, patrolling along the New England Highway in Harlaxton, Toowoomba in Queensland, when a driver of a blue sedan refused to stop after he was given direction to pull over.

The body camera footage shows the driver’s non-compliance with the officer’s repeated orders to pull over to the left. Instead, the driver appeared to gesture to the officer that he wanted to pull over to the right. He then suddenly swerved to the right in the officer’s direction. Collision was avoided by the officer’s evasive maneuvering and breaking.

The blue sedan was later found after it had been crashed into a tree, off the highway, near Mount Luke, according to a police statement. Police used a dog squad to try to find the driver, but the dog squad lost the track after tracking for several hours through bushland.

The man was later found in Crows Nest, and police took him into custody around 5 p.m. local time.  The 42-year-old was charged with dangerous driving, endangering the life of a person in a vehicle with intent, failing to stop, and unlicensed driving while under State Penalties Enforcement Registry (SPER) suspension.

SPER is a government body that can suspend a person’s driver’s license for any type of debt, including those related to vehicle offences, if the person ignores an enforcement order sent to them. SPER does not issue the fines, but collects and enforces unpaid infringement notice fines, court-ordered monetary penalties, offender debt recovery orders, and offender levies.

Under the Police Powers and Responsibilities Act 2000, police officers can compel drivers to stop for various reasons, including questioning, breath test or swab test, or vehicle search. If a person doesn’t comply, they may face severe penalties that include fines and or imprisonment.

A first time offender in Queensland is normally faced with a $5,500 fine, or sentenced to 50 days at a correctional facility. The driver will also face a compulsory 2-year disqualification of their driver’s license.

From The Epoch Times

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