Triumphrat

Fast_Eddie

http://www.thisislincolnshire.co.uk/...ail/story.html

A biker was killed because a car driver, blinded by the sun pulled out of a junction. Driver of car found not guilty

One can say he shouldn't have gone, but how long should he have sat there?

I think the most telling part of this, and the what highlights that the driver acted dangerously is that the biker, with sun behind him and therefore able to see, had no time to react.

I'm sure the poor chap who died doesn't care either way, he'd just want to be alive, but it sets a very dangerous precident in future.

All you need to negate any blame in a SMIDSY is "it was the sun's fault"

BrewDudeBob

I reject that. If the Sun was blinding the driver and the driver could not see what was in front of him, it was negligence at the very least.

Same thing happened to a neighbor right around the corner of my house. He was pushing his daughter in a stroller, and a guy in a pickup truck clipped my neighbor and his daughter. Thank God neither was seriously hurt, but the driver said he was blinded by the Sun. The driver was completely at fault because he did not exercise enough caution.

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roxynoodle

That's pretty sad. We've all had instances though of looking into the sun and having a hard time seeing. But, that's why you look longer and make sure before pulling out. The same with fog, snow, rain, etc. I haven even opened the windows in my truck in fog to listen first.

I watched a crazy show last night where this guy's wife tried to hire a hit man to kill him. She only got one year in prison. It gets worse, by that state's laws she was still entitled to half his pension and assets during their divorce. If your spouse tries to kill you, I don't think he/she should be entitled to half your pension when you retire!

Fast_Eddie

I completely agree. He obviously didn't pay enough attention/make enough effort.

My comment that "how long should he sit there" didn't mean I agreed with just driving forward, but that at some point (once had checked enough) he would go instead of eg. waiting for the sun to set.

triumpt120rv

If your justice system is similiar to ours, the financial standing of the defendant in comparison to the deceased would be the most influental factor in the case.

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saphena

When I want to pull out from a junction I look both ways and make my decision based on two questions: do I have enough information to make a decision and, if so, is it clear.

If either answer is 'no' then I don't go but if both answers are 'yes' I will go.

If I go and it turns out that there was a motorcyclist there, obviously I made a mistake but what should I have done? I took reasonable precautions; I had satisfied myself that it was safe to go; I didn't assume and I didn't fail to look.

If that Ducati rider had survived his new year's resolution might be: when approaching a junction, don't assume either that the driver has seen you or is even looking for you.

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paulfun

If the sun is so blinding that you cant see, It is unsafe to proceed.!

To determine actual guilt one would need to look at the distance of view on a similar day at the same time and determine if it was indeed unsafe to proceede. Then and only then could one make an informed decision to the neglagence of the driver.

Thruxton-Texas

They don't sell sunglasses in England??

Fast_Eddie

Did you read the article? If you are blinded by then sun, then you do not have enough information to make the judgement.

Thruxton, we'd only need them a couple of days a year so it's not a big market.

mistermellow001

That just sucks. I've been in situations like this (both car and bike). It's easy enough to make a sort of pin-hole camera by peaking through the cracks between your fingers. There's a wide intersection in my town that's in direct line with the sun for a good part of the year. Even with sunglasses, I have a hard time seeing the turn lane across from me, and have to use my hands to make sure there are no stragglers coming out of that lane before proceeding.

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