Background

Quentin Hunt was instructed by Capita PLC to defend the interests of one of their employees, a Miss DP who was faced a private prosecution by a self-styled ‘motoring activist’  for information provided by Transport for London in a traffic contravention matter before the Traffic Adjudicator.

DP was an enforcement officer who works for Capita PLC on behalf of Transport for London. Her job is to process and issue evidential packs relating to parking and bus lane violations in the Greater London area. The activist sought to personally prosecute Miss DP, a lady of good character. On the basis that she made a false representation to the traffic management enforcement authority by stating that a document had been issued and a copy was included in the evidence and that she did so recklessly and knowing it to be false. The charge was brought under section 80(5) of the Traffic Management Act 2004.

Issues with the prosecution

The private prosecution was completely without merit and Quentin set about defending it with vigour. His first action was to challenge the legitimacy of the issuing of the summons and to make an application that the case was an abuse of the process of the Court. Quentin also contacted the Crown Prosecution Service and made robust representations that the case neither met the evidential or public interest test and that it should be taken over by the CPS and discontinued.

Before Quentin’s applications could be considered by the Court he received notification from the CPS that his representations had been successful and that the CPS were taking over the case against his client and discontinuing it.

Case dismissal

Quentin’s client was delighted as this resulted in the charge being dropped and his client not having to engage with the Court process any further.

Quentin Hunt is a criminal defence barrister who specialises in defending of and opposing the issue of private prosecutions.  He believes that the best way to oppose a private prosecution is to ensure that the private prosecution does not proceed to trial in the first place. This can often be by way of applications to the court and, as in this case, applications to the Crown Prosecution Service that a case should not continue.

Quentin Hunt has written an article on how to effectively defend private prosecutions that can be found here.

If you find yourself facing a private prosecution or a potential private prosecution, then you may wish to get experienced and effective representation to ensure that the matter does not result in a criminal conviction. Quentin Hunt is a criminal defence specialist barrister who has been practising for over 25 years in this area, he accepts instructions both through solicitors and directly from members of the public. You may contact Quentin for a free, no-obligation initial conversation as to how he may be able to assist in your case.