£390, 000 in fines returned to Motorists

Reported in 2004 by the ABD

6,500 Drivers? That's £390,000

North Wales police had to refund thousands of fines after a judge discovered they'd been printing a signature on forms rather than getting an officer to check and sign each one as the law requires.

Judge Derek Halbert slammed North Wales Police for automating speeding prosecutions.

Demonstrating once again their contempt for due legal process when dealing with drivers, the police had submitted numerous items of evidence supposedly witnessed and signed by a police officer, yet it was revealed in court that the signature had in fact been scanned and added by computer.

The judge described the police procedure as "utterly inappropriate". Once their little game had been uncovered, the police promised to change the procedure. The question is why they introduced it in the first place.