Until his training (including vehicle familiarisation) is complete, I don't think he should be available for rapid response or pursuit work (in the same way that I don't think a dog handler should be unleashed on the public with an unfamiliar dog!)
For me, the problem isn't whether PC Milton drove in excess of the speed limit; it's that he drove in a manner he could not have known to be safe. He was "pushing the envelope" and the closer you get to the edge of the envelope, the more likely is catastrophe. By driving as close as he could to a limit he didn't know, I consider that PC Milton unnecessarily placed the public in danger.
the top speed for the 3.2 GSi Vectra is 154 mph - so I suspect he was driving absolutely flat out. Now, the police often need to drive faster than the limit and, provided they do so well within the capabilities of both driver and car, that can be perfectly safe. Not so "pushing the envelope" in an unfamiliar vehicle in the way that PC Milton did. He couldn't have been sure of being within the capabilities of the car - because that's what he was trying to find out.
Police Speeding 841So, you're happy for the police to unnecessarily put the public in danger? Places like Millbrook have every sort of road type and offer a chance to find out just how a...
-- Geoff Lane Cornwall, UK
