Ok, this one is already on the Facebook forum, but it's very difficult to follow all the different conversations on there, so hopefully we can discuss it reasonably here.
Theft victim charged with murder after ramming thief off his motorcycleTHE victim of a motorcycle theft has been charged with murder after ramming two motorcycle thieves from his motorcycle as they tried to escape.
First of all, I'd like to ask that, despite how people feel, we keep this discussion civil and avoid ill-tempered comments.
The short version is that the biker heard someone trying to steal his motorcycle, chased after them in his car and rammed them twice, the second impact causing the thieves to be knocked off the bike, one dying after hitting a lamp post and the second suffering serious injuries.
It should also be mentioned that the biker then left the scene and other members of the public then had to help the injured people.
Now, whilst some people may be thinking "they deserved it" or "serves them right" or "I'd do the same", there are few points that need to be made. (NB I follow The Secret Barrister on Twitter who often explains how the newspaper headlines and stories about cases like these are often exaggerated or distorted and don't necessarily represent the facts correctly).
So, a few points...
1) Obviously, theft is wrong.
2) You have the right to use "reasonable force" to defend yourself and your property if it or you are at risk.
3) Using a car to chase people and knock them off a motorcycle most probably does not come under the heading of "reasonable".
4) Taking the law into your own hands is generally frowned upon.
5) Whilst the headline says the prosecution are calling for a murder charge, it's unlikely that such a charge would actually be proven as it would be necessary to demonstrate intent to kill.
6) Because he left the scene, presumably he was aware that what he had done, so it's very unlikely he'd get off completely. Most likely the charge will be reduced to manslaughter and he'd probably be best to make a guilty plea before it goes to court to get the maximum reduction in sentence.
7) Yes, certain members of the Police are authorised to use "Tactical contact" to stop stolen bikes, however they are *trained* for this and to evaluate the best way to do it in a way that causes least danger.
8 ) No matter what you think of bike thieves, the penalty for theft is not murder, so please, no lynch mob style comments about "they deserved it" or "if more people did this, there would be fewer bike thefts".
9) The Prosecution are trying to get their case out into the public domain and media, unfortunately the Defence can't generally do the same. That's just how the system works.
There's probably more, but that covers a fair few things that will come up.