Garda Stopped Me. My Rights?

corkboyo

Earlier, I was stopped by a male Garda when cycling into Cork City. He told me the reason he stopped me was because I "flew across the road" between the city hall and the Elysien. He asked me for my name, address, telephone number and date of birth. Before I go into my side of the story I want to know do people have a right not disclose this information if they feel they are being unfairly treated?

I was cycling on an empty footpath coming from the crossroads by the Sextant bar. The lights were red for traffic. All lanes were taken up with stationary cars and the green man was obviously showing for pedestrians to cross. I was in no way "flying" or even traveling too fast and like I said the footpath was clear. In fact the first person I encountered on the footpath was at the very top of the road when the garda stopped me.

I have never been involved with the guards before and I just thought this was a complete joke and waste of time. Does he really have nothing better to do? I'm not aiming for people, I don't speed on footpaths, I'm careful and honestly I was a little annoyed afterwards that he asked for all my personal details over this incident. Please note I was polite, calm but slightly shocked. I was taken aback by him and I'm sure he picked up on that. Perhaps my vacant stare made him feel awkward because he got flustered towards the end when he realised how ridiculous his actions were.

Anyway, rant over. I just want to know if anybody has had similar experiences and also the main thing is I'd like to know are people's rights on the matter. I'm all for abiding by the rules so if I'm wrongfully feeling discriminated against then I'll accept the rules and get over it.

Thanks for reading

drkpower

corkboyo wrote: »

I was cycling on an 'empty' footpath

Did i miss a recent law change on this?

zuroph

you were breaking the law, and got caught.

corkboyo

drkpower wrote: »

Did i miss a recent law change on this?

I didn't realise this was a law so fair enough. Thanks for that!

..but that wasn't the reason he stopped me. He stopped me because I 'flew across the road'. Nothing about cycling on a footpath. He didn't make his reasons clear to me then. That's not my fault but his error.

zuroph

are you saying you cycled across at the green pedestrian crossing?

drkpower

corkboyo wrote: »

I didn't realise this was a law so fair enough. Thanks for that!

..but that wasn't the reason he stopped me. He stopped me because I 'flew across the road'. Nothing about cycling on a footpath. He didn't make his reasons clear to me then. That's not my fault but his error.

You didnt know it was illegal to cycle on the footpath?
And you dont know that it is illegal to cycle across a pedestrian crossing?

'your rights' are the least of your problems:D

corkboyo

zuroph wrote: »

you were breaking the law, and got caught.

Thanks for confirming this. Appreciate it I suppose most guards are lenient towards people cycling on footpaths so. I see people cycling on footpaths all the time and also in front of garda a lot of the time too. Ah well

Thanks for the reply

corkboyo

zuroph wrote: »

are you saying you cycled across at the green pedestrian crossing?

Oh, yeah I am.

bedstuybosco

policeman was just doing his job

U may disagree with his version of "flying across" the road but unfortunately its a subjective test and his opinion is good enough for him to stop you, once its reasonable and genuinely held.

That said it did sound like a rather indiscriminate matter, i wouldnt worry about it

regards

fellow cyclist

amiable

I don't think you will hear any more on this.

He may just have given you a gentle reminder.

Chnandler Bong

Its called a footpath for a reason

twogunkid

corkboyo wrote: »

Earlier, I was stopped by a male Garda when cycling into Cork City. He told me the reason he stopped me was because I "flew across the road" between the city hall and the Elysien. He asked me for my name, address, telephone number and date of birth. Before I go into my side of the story I want to know do people have a right not disclose this information if they feel they are being unfairly treated?

Here is what happened. I was cycling on an 'empty' footpath coming from the crossroads by the Sextant bar. The lights were red for traffic. All lanes were taken up with stationary cars and the green man was obviously showing for pedestrians to cross. I was in no way "flying" or even traveling too fast and like I said the footpath was clear. In fact the first person I encountered on the footpath was at the very top of the road when the garda stopped me.

I have never been involved with the guards before and I just thought this was a complete joke and waste of time. Does he really have nothing better to do? I'm not aiming for people, I don't speed on footpaths, I'm careful and honestly I'm annoyed that he asked for all my personal details over this incident. Please note I was polite, calm and just in shock really. I was taken aback by him and I'm sure he picked up on that. Perhaps my vacant stare made him feel awkward because he got flustered towards the end when he realised how ridiculous his actions were.

Anyway, rant over. I just want to know if anybody has had similar experiences and also the main thing is I'd like to know are people's rights on the matter. I'm all for abiding by the rules so if I'm wrongfully feeling discriminated against then I'll accept the rules and get over it.

Thanks for reading

That guy was doing his duty.
You me or none of us can break the law and expect guards to look the other way--were they to do this society would just break down--it dosent seem a big deal to you--but it is bang out of order to break lights or cycle on footpath.
Guard is well within his rights to ask you for your details and whilst I personally wish you no bad feelings I believe persons who behave in this fashion should be brought before a justice and let him decide if its a big deal or not.
As for discrimination--did he let other cyclists go by and stop you alone--surely not !!!

You seem concerned about your rights
What about your responsibilities ?

corkboyo

bedstuybosco wrote: »

policeman was just doing his job

U may disagree with his version of "flying across" the road but unfortunately its a subjective test and his opinion is good enough for him to stop you, once its reasonable and genuinely held.

That said it did sound like a rather indiscriminate matter, i wouldnt worry about it

regards

fellow cyclist

Thanks a lot for the reply. I appreciate your input. I agree though, if they want to single out one particular cyclist then they should just stop all cyclists doing the same thing. It causes less grief then

corkboyo

twogunkid wrote: »

As for discrimination--did he let other cyclists go by and stop you alone--surely not !!!

Not on this occasion no ...but I'm guessing he doesn't stop every cyclist he sees. Like I said above, if he feels his duty is to stop me then he should stop every other cyclist he sees too and not to single out people.

No1J

Sorry, but your in the wrong.

1 cycling on the footpath.

2 cycling across the crossing.

And probably the one that might get you done, the vacant stare. don't give them a reason or piss them off. If you do not give your details then it's off to the station and things become official. Fine coming you way I think.

PS If this does go to court don't do the vacant stare thing to the Judge unless you like a lot of male companionship.

charlemont

corkboyo wrote: »

Thanks for confirming this. Appreciate it I suppose most guards are lenient towards people cycling on footpaths so. I see people cycling on footpaths all the time and also in front of garda a lot of the time too. Ah well

Thanks for the reply

Thats a relatively safe footpath to cycle on, But a motorist/cop would be surprised to see a bike coming at speed from the right if they are waiting at the lights opposite the bridge, If someone broke the reds or amber he wouldnt see you till its too late so I suppose the cop has a point.

alex73

corkboyo wrote: »

I didn't realise this was a law so fair enough. Thanks for that!

People like you give cyclists a bad name.... Where in your brain did you think it was ok to cycle on a footpath?

Rules of the road for a Cyclists are practically the same as for a motorist.

drkpower

corkboyo wrote: »

Not on this occasion no ...but I'm guessing he doesn't stop every cyclist he sees. Like I said above, if he feels his duty is to stop me then he should stop every other cyclist he sees too and not to single out people.

Perhaps he should, and perhaps he does; but it doesnt change your own situation.

And it is a strange complaint for you to make given you earlier concern that a Garda's time should be better spent.....:rolleyes:

corkboyo wrote: »

Does he really have nothing better to do? .

You are not coming across especially well here, OP!

jakdelad

corkboyo wrote: »

Earlier, I was stopped by a male Garda when cycling into Cork City. He told me the reason he stopped me was because I "flew across the road" between the city hall and the Elysien. He asked me for my name, address, telephone number and date of birth. Before I go into my side of the story I want to know do people have a right not disclose this information if they feel they are being unfairly treated?

Here is what happened. I was cycling on an 'empty' footpath coming from the crossroads by the Sextant bar. The lights were red for traffic. All lanes were taken up with stationary cars and the green man was obviously showing for pedestrians to cross. I was in no way "flying" or even traveling too fast and like I said the footpath was clear. In fact the first person I encountered on the footpath was at the very top of the road when the garda stopped me.

I have never been involved with the guards before and I just thought this was a complete joke and waste of time. Does he really have nothing better to do? I'm not aiming for people, I don't speed on footpaths, I'm careful and honestly I'm annoyed that he asked for all my personal details over this incident. Please note I was polite, calm and just in shock really. I was taken aback by him and I'm sure he picked up on that. Perhaps my vacant stare made him feel awkward because he got flustered towards the end when he realised how ridiculous his actions were.

Anyway, rant over. I just want to know if anybody has had similar experiences and also the main thing is I'd like to know are people's rights on the matter. I'm all for abiding by the rules so if I'm wrongfully feeling discriminated against then I'll accept the rules and get over it.

Thanks for reading

nothing more criminal than people riding pushbikes on footpaths
the gard was doing his job properly
this sort of criminality must be stamped out
six months al least should be imposed and a hefty fine and yes you should supply all details
my god man what were you thinking of
riding a bike on a footpath
you could have seriously killed someone
its worse than driving the wrong way down a motorway full to the bag
of drink coming from a race meeting
the full rigurs of the law must be brought to bear on this one

Bosco boy

OP, I hope you don't progress to a car anytime soon!

corkboyo

alex73 wrote: »

People like you give cyclists a bad name.... Where in your brain did you think it was ok to cycle on a footpath?

Rules of the road for a Cyclists are practically the same as for a motorist.

Thanks for confirming I was in the wrong but I understood this from the first few replies. I'll be a lot more wary the next time though. Appreciate the input!

corkboyo

Bosco boy wrote: »

OP, I hope you don't progress to a car anytime soon!

[ ] Provided constructive input

[x] Likes Bosco

Zambia

You do realise when your read your rights then you really in the ****.

bohsboy

Dont worry about it. No matter what anyone says here, in the grand scale of things its no big crime. You'll hear nothing about it. Courts are too tied up with a lot more serious stuff than this.

Must try that vacant stare though!

The_Snapper

jakdelad wrote: »

nothing more criminal than people riding pushbikes on footpaths
the gard was doing his job properly
this sort of criminality must be stamped out
six months al least should be imposed and a hefty fine and yes you should supply all details
my god man what were you thinking of
riding a bike on a footpath
you could have seriously killed someone
its worse than driving the wrong way down a motorway full to the bag
of drink coming from a race meeting
the full rigurs of the law must be brought to bear on this one

ROFL.....:D

Don't forget the Commendation also for the Garda for preventing a potentially
serious situation.

There could have been mass fatalities, pile ups, holy crow, the Elysian could have collapsed due to a bike "flying" into it......

OP, you could have brought the city to it's knees.... :eek:

As for your rights, you have to answer the Garda's questions if he suspects an offence.

Our man in Havana

As for your rights, you have to answer the Garda's questions if he suspects an offence.

Not true at all. You only have to give name, address and DOB, otherwise you have the right to remain silent.

jakdelad

Our man in Havana wrote: »

Not true at all. You only have to give name, address and DOB, otherwise you have the right to remain silent.

and if that dont work try the vacant stare
drop your trousers
the gard will cover you with his tunic

that will take the grin off his face

TylerIE

corkboyo wrote: »

Earlier, I was stopped by a male Garda when cycling into Cork City. He told me the reason he stopped me was because I "flew across the road" between the city hall and the Elysien. He asked me for my name, address, telephone number and date of birth. Before I go into my side of the story I want to know do people have a right not disclose this information if they feel they are being unfairly treated?

Response:

Road Traffic Act 1961

108.—A member of the Garda Síochána may demand of a person in charge of a pedal cycle whom the member suspects of having committed any crime or offence or of having been concerned or involved in a collision or other event in a public place causing injury to person or property, the name and address of such person, and if such a person refuses or fails to give his name and address or gives a name or address which the member has reasonable grounds for believing to be false or misleading, the member may take the cycle, by force if necessary, and retain it until such time as he is satisfied as to the identity of such person

Also not meaning to flame but if you were on the main road and travelling in the direction of the motor vehicles, stopping at red lights etc, the Garda probably wouldnt have had cause to stop you for speeding. To all intents and purposes Cyclists are expected to obey all Rules of the Road that apply to motor vehicles.

Furthermore I have seen injuries of various degrees - from elderly ladies knocked over to cyclists swerving off a footpath into moving vehicles on the road to avoid pedestrians (Damaging the car and endangering motor traffic), so if the Garda didnt have other more immediate duties to attend to its a great use of his time to enforce safety legisliation rather than just ignoring an offence.

Esel

Our man in Havana wrote: »

Not true at all. You only have to give name, address and DOB, otherwise you have the right to remain silent.

Is there any mention of DOB in any statute?

Also, do you know does the Garda have to tell you the Act and Section that empowers him/her to demand your name and address?

TylerIE

Esel wrote: »

Is there any mention of DOB in any statute?

Also, do you know does the Garda have to tell you the Act and Section that empowers him/her to demand your name and address?

Road Traffic Act 2010, s80 which is substituted for s108 act of 1961:
80.— The following section is substituted for section 108 of the Principal Act:

“108.— A member of the Garda Síochána may demand of a person in charge of a pedal cycle whom the member suspects of having committed any crime or offence or of having been concerned or involved in a collision or other event in a public place causing injury to person or property, the name and address and date of birth of such person, and if such a person refuses or fails to give his or her name and address or date of birth or gives a name or address or date of birth which the member has reasonable grounds for believing to be false or misleading, the member may take the cycle, by reasonable force if necessary, and retain it until such time as he or she is satisfied as to the identity of such person.”.

All road users are expected to be familiar with the rules of the road, the responsibility lies on the cyclist.

Its not stated anywhere that the Garda has to state to you the precise leglislation which they are using.

jaybeeveedub

except for arrest without a warrant....??

S.4 CL 1994 I think....

jaybeeveedub

nix...

CL Act 1997

TylerIE

jaybeeveedub wrote: »

except for arrest without a warrant....??

S.4 CL 1994 I think....

What is except for arrest without warrant?

Cicero

corkboyo wrote: »

I was cycling on an empty footpath

A few months ago, I walked out of a shop, onto a footpath (as you do when walking out of a shop) and was crashed into by a total tool on a bicycle...if it was someone elderly, they would have been severely injured if not killed....I think this post is pathetic to be honest...there is no justification for cycling on a footpath...none.

Hooch

Its not just a footpath.....it sounds like the O/P crashed a red light which is just as much an offence for a bike as it is for a car.

Esel

Is it in The Netherlands that you can have points applied to your (vehicle) driving licence for offences committed while cycling?

Read something like that, somewhere, sometime . . . Vague, I know!

sdanseo

A Garda may require anyone to provide their Name and Address pretty much whenever they want, my suggestion to people is to get over it. They ask for your DOB because, amazingly, sometimes there are more than one person with the same name and sometimes they give fake addresses. It's basic stuff. I simply cannot understand why anyone would not want to give such basic information to a Garda.

As for OP's use of the footpath, ffs he cycled on a path it's not crime of the century, but he obviously did it in such a way that the Guard thought was out of line.

Rule of thumb - if a Garda tells you to do something, just do it unless it's going to seriously infringe your rights.

Storm-teacup-/thread

Turner

corkboyo wrote: »

Does he really have nothing better to do?

:rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes:

Maybe he had caught all the rapists and drug dealers early on in his shift and decided to downsize a bit.

yawnstretch

Lately I think the posters on boards are more like bots than humans.

Have any of you seen decent bike lanes in this country? Or roads for that matter.

I doubt most of you would have acted any different if you'd ever been in the same situation. And those of you saying you've never cycled on the path probably don't cycle much.

zuroph

yawnstretch wrote: »

Lately I think the posters on boards are more like bots than humans.

Have any of you seen decent bike lanes in this country? Or roads for that matter.

I doubt most of you would have acted any different if you'd ever been in the same situation. And those of you saying you've never cycled on the path probably don't cycle much.

He ran a red light.

BostonB

Cicero wrote: »

......there is no justification for cycling on a footpath...none.

What if you are 3?

Esel

I knew I had asked about a requirement to provide your DOB before.

Some interesting points came up on that thread, including an informative link in post #37.

zuroph

BostonB wrote: »

What if you are 3?

jailtime.

Esel

zuroph wrote: »

Naughty step.

FYP

goat2

corkboyo wrote: »

I didn't realise this was a law so fair enough. Thanks for that!

..but that wasn't the reason he stopped me. He stopped me because I 'flew across the road'. Nothing about cycling on a footpath. He didn't make his reasons clear to me then. That's not my fault but his error.

did you fly or cycle

Zambia

Esel wrote: »

Is it in The Netherlands that you can have points applied to your (vehicle) driving licence for offences committed while cycling?

Read something like that, somewhere, sometime . . . Vague, I know!

Here I think you can have piont's applied as a passenger in a car for not wearing a seat belt.

sadim

gogo

yawnstretch

zuroph wrote: »

He ran a red light.

You make it sound like he went through an intersection at high speed. That's not what happened. Everyone here is over reacting and it's ridiculous.

We know the law. We also have common sense. I see cyclists waiting at green men for pedestrians when there's no one around and I think we all know that it's just a technicality and anyone with a brain can see in those specific circumstances there is no danger.

The only danger is people who can only follow rules to the letter and have no comprehension of the spirit of the law.

jaybeeveedub

lst wrote: »

What is except for arrest without warrant?

your previous post was saying that a member of the Gardai does not have to quote section and statute to the person they are dealing with..... I thought they had to for arrest without a warrant...???

jaybeeveedub

yawnstretch wrote: »

You make it sound like he went through an intersection at high speed. That's not what happened. Everyone here is over reacting and it's ridiculous.

We know the law. We also have common sense. I see cyclists waiting at green men for pedestrians when there's no one around and I think we all know that it's just a technicality and anyone with a brain can see in those specific circumstances there is no danger.

The only danger is people who can only follow rules to the letter and have no comprehension of the spirit of the law.

by that argument a car can do the same.... and sure 190 km/h on the motorway is fine... there was no one around!

we may not agree with the letter of the law (I know I don't), and decide to flaunt it when we think we can get away with it (I know I do). I think the response from people here was based more on outrage at being pulled up on a flaunting of the law, than the fact that the law was flaunted in the first place....

corkboyo

zuroph wrote: »

He ran a red light.

I didn't run a red light at all. I was cycling across the road when the cars were stopped at a red light.