A DAWLISH motorist has won his battle to avoid a speeding fine and is now hoping to receive up to £500 compensation from central funds.
Sixty-year-old Peter Harry expected to defend himself in a full hearing at Totnes magistrates court this week.
But when Mr Harry confirmed his not guilty plea to the summons on Monday, crown prosecutor David Bowen offered no evidence and invited the bench to dismiss the case.
Mr Bowen explained that, to secure a conviction under the Road Traffic Regulation Act, the prosecution had to prove that the defendant drove at excessive speed on a restricted road either governed by 30mph and de-restriction signs or else by a restriction order imposed by the county council.
Mr Harry had gone to a great deal of trouble to provide photographs of the location and Mr Bowen said he had visited the area earlier in the day to examine it for himself.
Under the Act, Mr Harry claimed, street lights should be provided at not more than 200 yards apart along a restricted road.
Although this applied to the centre of the village, it was not the case at the margins of the boundary, and there was an arguable case that a portion of the A379 was not subject to the 30mph restriction.
Mr Bowen said it was also necessary to produce the original traffic order in court, not a copy, and in all the circumstances he said that an adjournment would not be justified as Mr Harry had gone to a lot of trouble to attend court.
Mr Harry, who expected to conduct his own defence, asked the court to award his costs, which he estimated at nearly £500. As well as travelling costs to court on various occasions, he had paid £210 to a firm of solicitors, £100 to the Association of British Drivers for advice and £100 to its fighting fund so it could defend his case if necessary.
The bench declined to set a figure on the award, but advised Mr Harry to submit his claim to the court clerk. Dismissing the case, Mrs J Proctor, chairman, said Mr Bowen had done everything to clarify the situation, but there had been a lack of care in presenting the case on the part of the police.
Mr Harry said after the hearing that he had carried out an immense amount of research in preparing his evidence.
'I did not know I had been done for speeding until I received the police summons,' he said. 'I asked them to send photographs, showing my Ford van at the scene, and I worked out where it happened.'
Mr Harry said the police had operated a mobile camera from a vehicle parked on the grass verge alongside the Oak Meadow Golf Club course. He said the police van should have been clearly visible to oncoming traffic, but it was hidden behind a large bed-and-breakfast sign. 'There were no street lights along that stretch of road, so how could they make out it was a restricted zone?'