J e s u s !

[Neil]

Lucky no one got killed - http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/blogs/...132852490.html

[krakenslayer]

For a second there Neil, I thought you'd seen the light.

[Neil]

For a second there Neil, I thought you'd seen the light. I think a number of people saw the head lights!

[Mike70]

the only light Neil sees is the little lamp that comes on to let him know it's safe to enter his secret porno room. as for that vid: wow. talk about needing a change of underwear.

[krisvds]

It's Belgian soccer player Legear crashing his car into that store. Needless to say the guy was drunk. There are more videos of the incident, shot by a surveillance camera, in which we see the guy and a friend of his stepping calmly out of the car and calmly walk away. A few seconds later he comes back, opens the trunk, takes out some of his possessions and walks off again. Meanwhile the guy in that video who got hit is lying on the floor screaming ... Unbelievable. A certain degree of primadonna behaviour is common with these guy sin recent years, but this is borderline psychotic. Wasn't the first time he crashed an expensive sportscar either.

[Neil]

It's Belgian soccer player Legear crashing his car into that store. Needless to say the guy was drunk. There are more videos of the incident, shot by a surveillance camera, in which we see the guy and a friend of his stepping calmly out of the car and calmly walk away. A few seconds later he comes back, opens the trunk, takes out some of his possessions and walks off again. Meanwhile the guy in that video who got hit is lying on the floor screaming .... Have you got a link to that? That to me suggests he needs to be prosecuted for what dangerous driving while under the influence of alcohol!

[krisvds]

I saw it on national tv and cant seem to find a copy online, but this comes close: http://www.hln.be/hln/nl/9091/Time-o...Tongeren.dhtml There's an interview with the guy who got hit (and miraculously survived) and some stills from the video where you see the player leaving the car and opening the trunk. There's even a shot of him walking out of the shop. Now what's weird is that every image of his friend who accompagnied him that night are gone, as are the videos of the incident. Probably has to do with legal issues ...

[Neil]

So surely this should merit a prosecution? Through negligence he's risked lives!

[krisvds]

Agreed. Just the other the player and his lawyers held a press conference stating that the man will follow 'driving lessons' with a rally pilot (!) and that 'he regrets what has happened' and will 'go into therapy' to sort out his life ... All to persuade the courts to punish him mildly I presume. Let's see how this one will play out. Wasn't the first time he crashed a car. Last time they took his license away for one month (!) ...

[Mike70]

exactly what are the penalties for drunk driving in the UK and in Belgium (kris)? ours are rather draconian over here after 1 or 2 offenses. i might not be clear on what you guys are saying but it seems to imply that the punishments for drunk driving are a bit milder over there? every state over here is different but in Ohio, number 4 becomes a felony and triggers prison time, mandatory vehicle forfeiture, and quite possibly a life time ban on driving. we call it OVI and here is the breakdown: First Ohio OVI 1st Drunk Driving Conviction * Jail – 3 Days Minimum up to 6 Months or, * Driver Intervention Program – For 3 Days * Jail – 6 Days (If Blood Alcohol Concentration .17 or Above) * License Suspension – From 6 Months to 3 Years * Reinstatement Fee - $450 * Fine – From $250 to $1,000 Second Ohio OVI 2nd Drunk Driving Conviction * Jail – 10 Days Minimum and, * Electronic Home Monitoring – From 18 Days to 6 Months * Jail – 20 Days (If Blood Alcohol Concentration .17 or Above) * Fine – From $350 to $1,500 * License Suspension – From 1 to 5 Years * Reinstatement Fee - $450 * Vehicle Immobilization – 90 Days * Driver Intervention Program Third Ohio OVI 3rd Drunk Driving Conviction * Jail – 30 Days to 1 Year or, * Jail – 15 Days and Electronic Home Monitoring from 55 days to 1 Year * Jail – 60 Days (If Blood Alcohol Concentration .17 or Above) * Fine – From $350 to $1,500 * License Suspension – From 1 to 10 Years * Reinstatement Fee - $450 * Vehicle Immobilization – 180 Days * Attend Mandatory Alcohol Treatment Program Fourth Ohio OVI 4th Drunk Driving Convictions * Felony Offense * Jail – 60 Days to 1 Year * Fine – From $800 to $10,000 * License Suspension – From 3 Years to Permanent * Reinstatement Fee - $450 * Mandatory Vehicle Forfeiture * Mandatory Drug / Alcohol Treatment Program you don't even want to know what happens at #5.

[krakenslayer]

We're pretty strict about it here too. The law isn't strictly dictated by instance of offense, so these penalties are the maximum available, it's up to the judge and you might well get less for a first offence: Driving with excess alcohol Endorsement code: DR10 It is an offence for a person to drive or attempt to drive a motor vehicle on a road or other public place with excess alcohol in his breath, blood or urine as evidenced by a certificate of analysis or printout. Legislation: Road Traffic Act 1988 s.5(1)(b) Penalty: 6 months prison sentence plus a fine of up to £5,000. 3-11 penalty points if obligatory disqualification is avoided in exceptional circumstances. Obligatory driving ban of between 12-36 months, subject to possible 25% reduction for attending drink driving rehabilitation course. Dunno about Belgium, though, but if he did that here, he'd probably do a stretch inside.

[Neil]

Agreed. Just the other the player and his lawyers held a press conference stating that the man will follow 'driving lessons' with a rally pilot (!) and that 'he regrets what has happened' and will 'go into therapy' to sort out his life ... All to persuade the courts to punish him mildly I presume. Let's see how this one will play out. Wasn't the first time he crashed a car. Last time they took his license away for one month (!) ... Criminal negligence causing risk to other peoples lives IMHO!

[krakenslayer]

Only partially on-topic here, but apparently in Finland they have a system whereby criminal fines are calculated as a percentage of your total income. That's fucking clever because it stops rich suckers like this guy swanning around like the rules don't apply to them, doing whatever they want and only having to pay, what is to them, a small sum of money.

[krisvds]

@ Mike the chances they'll lock him up are very slim. It all depends on the judge, but usually punishment for such behaviour is, at the most, that they forbid you to drive for a couple of years, force you to work for the community for a number of weeks (in hospitals usually) or follow a rehabilitation course and a fine amounting to a couple thousand euro. Usually they wont lock you up (just the one night to sober you up) unless someone got seriously injured or killed. For example: last time Legear (what's in a name) crashed his car into a house (no one injured, luckily, lots of damage) they took his licence for one month and he had to pay a fine of give or take 5000 euro. Peanuts for a guy like him ... Recently there has been a tendency to be more strict for these kind of offenses though. But nothing as strict as over in Ohio. A shame, really. such behaviour is inexcusable and merits something more serious than the 're-education' approach. and a handful of cash.

[Mike70]

Usually they wont lock you up (just the one night to sober you up) unless someone got seriously injured or killed. one further question, kris: if you do kill somebody while driving over the limit, is it treated as a homicide? over here it is treated as such "vehicular homicide" is the term used. If the driver was under the influence and is charged with a felony of the second degree for a DUI or DWI, the punishment for vehicular homicide may be up to eight years in prison and a driver’s license suspension for life. again, remember because of our system over here this pertains only to Ohio. the laws in one state can be very, very different from another.