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#Post#: 115130--------------------------------------------------
Single Justice Procedure Notice (SJPN) for a careless driving
(CD10) offense advice
DIR By: ab.ra731
Date: April 2, 2026, 1:11 pm
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TLDR at end
Looking for some advice on a SJPN I received for a driving
without due care an attention charge (CD10) which has a variable
fine and points from 3-9 points and 100GBP to 5000GBP fine. I
was not given any context on what my penalty will be if I plead
guilty. I will give context/events from my side, context of what
the officers witness statement is and extra info/what to do next
at the end (Sorry if long, I have added TLDR at the very end).
Any help with the matter is extremely appreciated.
---------------------------------------------------------
My side of the story:
Was driving on a 2 lane 70mph A road (about 900 metres long)
around 10pm 3 weeks ago, driving fast enough to pass other
vehicles on the road in the right lane (there was only about 4-8
cars on the left on about a 300-400 metre stretch of the road),
took an exit where limit dropped to 50 and I dropped below the
limit. The road split into 4 lanes; 2 to the left and 2 to a
roundabout on the right, I took the 2 on the left which had
large potholes across both which going the speed limit I swerved
to avoid, after this I saw an officers lights which I was pulled
over by and was then grilled for about 20 min on what happened
etc.
He told me that I was going 100mph when passing the cars on the
a road (which I actually didn't believe at the time but a friend
who was in the car with me confirmed this later) and I asked him
how he got this number and that I didn't believe him however I
didn't know my speed at the time and reiterated this repeatedly.
He told me he had bodycam footage of me speeding up away from
him as he joined the a road (I was already on the a road but
going the speed limit and only started speeding up after he
joined however I did not see him which is true) and I asked if
he had any other proof of my speed and he denied however I don't
know at current time if his bodycam shows his speed matching
mine when I was driving.
He also grilled me for swerving between lanes, I told him there
was no other cars on the road and that there were large potholes
I was attempting to avoid as I did not want to burst a tyre
which he did agree to however he still told me I shouldn't be
doing that.
Towards the end of the stop I asked him what charges will be and
he told me that I will be charged with driving without due care
and attention and will be sent a letter allowing to plead guilty
or not guilty; he told me if I plead guilty I will get 3 points
and a 100GBP fine otherwise if I choose to go to court my points
and fine will increase if I am found guilty.
---------------------------------------------------------
The SJPN and the officers witness account:
footnotes of officers account of the SJPN which I got in the
post yesterday in the order he wrote it:
He saw me when joining the A road and I began to speed away, he
caught up to me and matched my speed for approx. 200 yards and
maxed 100mph. I exited the road and whilst descending I was
swerving between lanes 1 and 2 before straddling the white line.
Whilst I was driving like this there were other road users
present who I posed risk to. He pulled me over and challenged me
on my driving, I 'initially denied my speed' then 'showed
remorse and apologised'. I admitted that I was swerving between
lanes before straddling the white line. Based on speed and
swerving between lanes (officer) is convinced that my standard
of driving is not of a careful and competent driver and that I
posed risk to other road users so I am being reported for
driving without due care and attention
I feel that the officers witness account is a
twisted/misleadingly worded version of the events. I will
include some of the reasons why below however apart from these
reasons I agree with everything else he wrote:
1. He mentioned that I was swerving which I agreed to but
did not mention the potholes in the road which I swerved to
avoid which he agreed to nor that I gave reasoning for this
swerving on the road.
2. Immediately after noting that I was swerving he also
noted that there was other road users. Neither of which are
untrue but they are independent of each other but when writing
the 2 statements together this is not indicated. Instead it
seems like I was swerving between/switching lanes whilst there
was other road users on the road however at the time there were
none, there was only a few cars which I passed in the left lane
while on the right on the A road, none after exiting
3. The officer wrote that he challenged my speed which I
'initially denied' and that I then 'showed remorse and
apologised'. Again neither of these statements are wrong, I did
initially deny my speed but I never admitted to it because at
the time I truly did not know my speed at the time. This instead
makes it sound like I at first said I didn't know my speed but
then said sorry for speeding but instead I did apologise to the
officer but for 'any inconvenience I have caused him during his
night shift' not for my speed and at no point did I accept that
I was speeding; of which he could not (at the time) produce any
evidence to show to me.
---------------------------------------------------------
What to do next?:
Initially was just going to plead guilty; I am a young driver
and my insurance will go up but I am working and can (hopefully)
just tank the difference or get a cheaper car; I also believed
because the officer told me I would just get 3 points and a
100GBP fine after pleading guilty. However after calling 6
solicitors/lawyers today (I only got through to 3) I was told by
all of them that the officer does not have any say in my final
penalty. Instead a judge will read the officers statement of
witness and then will charge me as he sees fit. Due to this and
the (as I have written above) places where I feel the officer
has misleadingly worded the events which to 3rd parties make the
offense seem worse than it is I am worried about more costly
charges (points and fines) due to being a young person who will
be moving out soon.
1 Solicitor told me to plead not guilty as they did not have
'concrete evidence' of my speed (the officer said he matched my
speed and that may be shown on the bodycam; another thing at
current time I am unsure of/want to know but can't without
access to his bodycam footage) and say I was avoiding potholes
when descending from the off ramp to 'maintain the state of my
vehicle' which cannot be considered 'careless driving'. A legal
advisor basically told me to plead guilty and good luck/hope for
the best. Finally another solicitor told me to plead not guilty
and ask for pleading guilty under different circumstances to
what was written under the statement of witness and then give my
side of events as this will give the judge my point of view. The
same solicitor also told me that by giving me a SJPN without any
previous action (such as a Notice of Intended Prosecution) there
is a higher chance that they are trying to give me worse final
penalties.
Honestly going to court seems a bit scary/a lot of effort. I
understand I am in the wrong but what advice on what to do next.
I am now (after speaking to solicitors as mentioned above)
leaning towards pleading not guilty but help and/or advice is
very much appreciated.
I would also like to request bodycam footage/evidence of the
event but am unsure how, do I just ring the courts (I tried
today but it was too late and just got booted from a queue at
5pm)? I understand that this is not required to be given to me
until I plead not guilty and even if they choose to give it to
me it may arrive after the deadline for making my plea but it
would be extremely helpful for my final decision.
again help and advice for my situation is much appreciated.
---------------------------------------------------------
TLDR:
was caught by an officer for speeding & swerving between lanes.
got an SJPN and was going to sign guilty however speaking to
solicitors makes me think I may get shafted due to some of the
officers wording in certain parts of his witness statement
(parts where I disagree with him can be found above in the
'officers witness account' section of this post) which give me
an unfavourable light/point of view and I am worried this will
lead to a heavier sentence from a judge if I choose to plead
guilty (accept what the officer said as true) so wanted advice
on what to do next, thanks.
---------------------------------------------------------
Final Questions:
Should I plead guilty or not guilty, If I plead not guilty under
what circumstances, How can I request bodycam footage (what is
the likelihood that I get it before my plea deadline; 18 days
from now)?
#Post#: 115136--------------------------------------------------
Re: Single Justice Procedure Notice (SJPN) for a careless
driving (CD10) offense advice
DIR By: NewJudge
Date: April 2, 2026, 3:42 pm
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On your own admission you were weaving between lanes and
straddling the white line. Even without the excess speed (which
you do not seem to deny, though I confess I have not read all
your post) that is enough to support a careless driving
prosecution.
--- Quote ---
> Should I plead guilty or not guilty,
--- End Quote ---
See above.
--- Quote ---
> If I plead not guilty under what circumstances.
--- End Quote ---
If you plead not guilty you are saying you did not commit the
offence – or at least you do not believe the evidence you have
seen supports it.
--- Quote ---
> How can I request bodycam footage (what is the likelihood that
I get it before my plea deadline; 18 days from now)?
--- End Quote ---
You have all the evidence the police intend to rely on to see
you convicted. You must decide which way to plead based on that.
If you want anything else tou must plead not guilty. There will
then be a “case management” hearing where you can ask for the
bodycam footage to be provided. You will have to convince the
court that it will either strengthen your case or undermine that
of the prosecution.
Ponder on those points first then if necessary, we can discuss
further.
#Post#: 115140--------------------------------------------------
Re: Single Justice Procedure Notice (SJPN) for a careless
driving (CD10) offense advice
DIR By: andy_foster
Date: April 2, 2026, 5:51 pm
---------------------------------------------------------
To convict you of the offence of speeding, the opinion of a
single witness is not sufficient, it has to be corroborated -
for example by performing a follow check. Measuring your speed
through a follow check, or measuring his own speed whilst you
are pulling away from him (meaning that your speed must have
been greater than his) can suffice.
However, you have not been charged with speeding - either
because there is a question mark over whether the evidence is
sufficient for that offence, or because careless is a more
appropriate charge - so the above appears to be about as
relevant as the advice given by some of the professionals you
spoke to. As a general rule of thumb, short of dangerous driving
(and even in some cases where dangerous might be the more
appropriate charge), the police will go for speeding if the
evidence supports it because it is easiest to prove.
As an aggravating factor for careless driving, the only question
regarding evidence of speed (ignoring questions of overarching
admissibility under s. 20 RTA 1988 if a device of a type
prescribed is not approved) is weight - having potentially heard
evidence from both sides, which version do they prefer.
Do you have evidence that there were potholes there, other than
your own testimony? When you were cautioned at the side of the
road, and told that failure to mention anything that you
subsequently rely on may harm your defence, did you explain that
you were swerving to avoid the potholes? Were the other cars
also swerving to avoid the potholes, or were they just ploughing
through them?
If you wish to admit the offence, but dispute the alleged facts
you can enter what is known as a Newton plea. The court would
then have to accept your version, or hold a Newton hearing -
essentially the same as a trial, but solely to establish the
facts that are material to the seriousness of the offence, and
the sentence.
If you do not object to a witness statement, you cannot
subsequently challenge its veracity, although you can still
comment on it and point out any self-evident flaws. I would say
that the court has no right to read more into the statement than
what it actually says, but I would be wary of relying on them
not reading between the lines. That said, if this goes to trial,
I would expect the occifer to attend to give evidence in person
- at which point he is gioving his evidence, not the witness
statement. Tactically, objecting to the statement would mean
that there was no evidence if the occifer failed to turn up
(unless the case was adjourned to enable him to do so).
The bodycam evidence is unlikely to be needed to convict you,
but might help your case if the occifer's recollection was
clouded.
#Post#: 115142--------------------------------------------------
Re: Single Justice Procedure Notice (SJPN) for a careless
driving (CD10) offense advice
DIR By: Ex CPS here
Date: April 2, 2026, 11:33 pm
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If you accept that your driving fell below the proper standard,
the best course is usually to plead guilty and put in careful
mitigation. The aim there is to keep the penalty as low as
possible. You should not assume the officer's roadside comment
about "3 points and £100" will be honoured, because once the
matter is before the court, sentence is for the court, not the
officer.
If you accept the offence but say the officer's account
overstates parts of what happened, there is a middle course. You
can plead guilty but make clear that you do not accept the more
damaging wording. In your case, that would mean saying the
movement between lanes after the exit was because of potholes,
not because you were weaving recklessly through traffic, and
that your apology was not an admission of speeding.
A not guilty plea is open to you, but I must be blunt: on the
facts you have given me, that looks the riskier route. The speed
point may be difficult to fight, and if you lose after trial,
the court may sentence you on the prosecution's version in
fuller terms.
So, speaking practically, your best remedy is likely to be
damage control rather than a full contest. That means either a
guilty plea with strong mitigation, or a guilty plea on a
carefully limited factual basis if you want to challenge the
officer's more loaded wording.
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