4
O’HALLORAN AND FRANCIS v. THE UNITED KINGDOM JUDGMENT
THE FACTS
I. THE CIRCUMSTANCES OF THE CASE
8. The applicants were born in 1933 and 1939 and live in London and
Petersfield respectively.
A. Mr O’Halloran (application no. 15809/02)
9. On 7 April 2000, at 4.55 a.m., a vehicle of which the applicant was
the registered keeper, registration number T61 TBX, was caught on a speed
camera driving at 69 miles per hour (mph) on the M11 motorway where the
temporary speed limit was 40 mph.
10. On 17 April 2000, the police camera enforcement unit of the Essex
Constabulary wrote to the applicant:
“I have photographic evidence that the driver of T61 TBX failed to comply with the
speed limit ... It is intended to institute proceedings against the driver for the offence
of failing to comply with the speed limit ... You have been named as the driver of the
vehicle at the time of the alleged offence and have a legal obligation to comply with
the provisions of the notice contained on page 2. I must warn you that if you fail to
comply with this demand within 28 days you will commit an offence and be liable on
conviction to a maximum penalty similar to that of the alleged offence itself – a fine
of £1,000 and 3-6 penalty points.”
11. The attached Notice of Intended Prosecution informed the applicant
that it was intended to institute proceedings against the driver of the vehicle.
He was asked to furnish the full name and address of the driver of the
vehicle on the relevant occasion or to supply other information that was in
his power to give and which would lead to the driver’s identification. He
was again informed that a failure to provide information was a criminal
offence under section 172 of the Road Traffic Act 1988.
12. The applicant answered the letter confirming that he was the driver
at the relevant time.
13. On 27 March 2001 the applicant was summoned to attend North
Essex Magistrates’ Court where he was tried for driving in excess of the
speed limit. Prior to the trial, the applicant sought to exclude the confession
made in response to the Notice of Intended Prosecution, relying on
sections 76 and 78 of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 read in
conjunction with Article 6 of the Convention. His application was refused in
the light of the decision of the Privy Council in Brown v. Stott
[2001] 2 WLR 817. Thereafter the prosecution relied upon the photograph
of the speeding vehicle and the admission obtained as a result of the
section 172 demand. The applicant was convicted and fined 100 pounds