Prosecution for fare evasion

[DaisyWilliams]

Hi, I am studying in wales and live in England. I'm being taken to court for fare evasion because I was a complete idiot and tried to travel using a child ticket from Cardiff Central to hereford when I was 19. They are prosecuting me under the law 'the regulation of railways act 1889 as amended by section 84 (2) of the transport act 1962 and section 18 of the British railways act 1970' The only reason that I can think of that I didn't get a penalty fare is because of my age? Being 19 I should have definitely known better. I was wondering if I could get any advice on what exactly is going to happen when I go to court and whether I will get an opportunity to say how sorry I am and if it's going to effect the outcome. I'm pleading guilty so is it inevitable that I will have a criminal record? And will it last for life and how likely is it that it will prevent me from getting a job as a teacher? If I do get to say something I've written out a draft and was wondering if anything that's said in it I should avoid saying:

"In November last year, regrettably I attempted to travel with an invalid ticket. I can only apologise for my actions and ensure that it was a one off panic decision on the realisation I would be overdrawn had I bought the correct ticket; however I understand that this is no excuse for my actions. Whilst I am not condoning what I did, I am deeply concerned about what the effects of having a criminal record will be on my education at Cardiff University where I am currently in my first year studying English and Philosophy and any future career prospects. I am also concerned that this conviction will affect any future residency or occupations in, or entrance to the US or Australia and many other countries. Due to the nature of my preferred occupation of teaching revolving around children, I am fearful that having a conviction will have detrimental effects on obtaining a job in this particular field. I understand the severity of the situation and accept that I have only myself to blame for the consequences of my actions and will accept any penalty that I am served with."

My dream is to live and work in Australia and I was wondering if anyone could tell me if that will no longer be an option? Also half of my family live in Sri Lanka and was wondering if I will no longer be able to go there or have the option of living and working there? I would appreciate any helpful responses and advice (Sorry for the length)

 

[island]

What documentation have you received so far? Do you have a court date?

 

[yorkie]

Hi, I am studying in wales and live in England. I'm being taken to court for fare evasion because I was a complete idiot and tried to travel using a child ticket from Cardiff Central to hereford when I was 19. They are prosecuting me under the law 'the regulation of railways act 1889 as amended by section 84 (2) of the transport act 1962 and section 18 of the British railways act 1970' The only reason that I can think of that I didn't get a penalty fare is because of my age?

The reason they didn't charge a Penalty Fare, is because it's a higher than usual fare charged to people who make a mistake. It's therefore not applicable to cases such as yours.

Being 19 I should have definitely known better. I was wondering if I could get any advice on what exactly is going to happen when I go to court and whether I will get an opportunity to say how sorry I am and if it's going to effect the outcome. I'm pleading guilty so is it inevitable that I will have a criminal record? And will it last for life and how likely is it that it will prevent me from getting a job as a teacher? If I do get to say something I've written out a draft and was wondering if anything that's said in it I should avoid saying:

If you plead guilty, then yes you will get a criminal record, and this will need to be disclosed to your employer if you get a job as a teacher. It will be up to the employer to make a decision.

"In November last year, regrettably I attempted to travel with an invalid ticket. I can only apologise for my actions and ensure that it was a one off panic decision on the realisation I would be overdrawn had I bought the correct ticket; however I understand that this is no excuse for my actions. Whilst I am not condoning what I did, I am deeply concerned about what the effects of having a criminal record will be on my education at Cardiff University where I am currently in my first year studying English and Philosophy and any future career prospects. I am also concerned that this conviction will affect any future residency or occupations in, or entrance to the US or Australia and many other countries. Due to the nature of my preferred occupation of teaching revolving around children, I am fearful that having a conviction will have detrimental effects on obtaining a job in this particular field. I understand the severity of the situation and accept that I have only myself to blame for the consequences of my actions and will accept any penalty that I am served with."

Rather than plead guilty and read this out in court, why not write to Arriva Trains Wales and see if you can negotiate an out of court settlement?

For a first offence, people who seek to settle out of court are, more often than not, generally able to reach an agreement, based on the feedback I've seen.

 

[DaisyWilliams]

I have received a summons to court on 5th June

 

[yorkie]

I have received a summons to court on 5th June

Surely they wrote to you several weeks (or months) ago about this?

That's in only two days time, so I'm not sure if you have time to settle out of court now! Perhaps DaveNewcastle will know if it's a realistic prospect at this late stage...

(that question has probably been answered in previous topics, if you do a search...)

 

[DownSouth]

I can't speak for Sri Lanka, but here in Australia the standards for people trying to gain residence are very high and a conviction for a dishonesty offence would be likely to rule you out until it becomes a spent conviction. It probably wouldn't prevent you from working here on a temporary working visa, but you wouldn't be able to do that for teaching as a temporary working visa requires the employer to show that the job could not be performed by a citizen - but there are already too many teachers here who can't get teaching jobs other than for fixed-term contracts covering other teachers on leave.

It would not prevent you travelling here for tourism or for a working holiday, but a working holiday would not allow you to be a teacher.

 

[DaisyWilliams]

Thanks for your advice, the court date is only 2 days away and I rang the prosecution and asked if it could be dealt with through the civil court and they said that they couldn't due to it being a criminal offence. With regards to the penalty fare, their website states that a penalty fare can be given if a person over the age of 15 travels using a child rate ticket. I also didn't travel I attempted to and on numerous occasions offered to pay the full fare. But i guess they are completely within their rights to charge me however they see fit.

 

[Greenback]

The extract is not from the ATW website. ATW don't operate a Penalty Fare scheme. A PF was not, therefore, an option.

 

[Chapeltom]

Thanks for your advice, the court date is only 2 days away and I rang the prosecution and asked if it could be dealt with through the civil court and they said that they couldn't due to it being a criminal offence. With regards to the penalty fare, their website states that a penalty fare can be given if a person over the age of 15 travels using a child rate ticket. I also didn't travel I attempted to and on numerous occasions offered to pay the full fare. But i guess they are completely within their rights to charge me however they see fit.

It doesn't matter if you travelled or not, you purchased an invalid ticket with an intent to deprieve Arriva Trains Wales of the rightful fare.

 

[DaisyWilliams]

Thanks for the advice and comments, will this conviction be on my record for life?

 

[DaveNewcastle]

I've been alerted to this thread.

The options at this late stage are very limited. There is no prospect of transferring a criminal prosecution to a civil court; they don't have the jurisdiction to hear it. The Summons has been issued long ago and a date has been set, but there is still the potential to have it adjourned, or to plea Not Guilty which will delay it until another date when the Prosecution's Witnesses can attend to give their evidence. (increasing costs and risk).

There's also little point in making the 'speech' you've prepared if you're also going to plea Guilty, as the Court will then be obliged to move straight to sentencing and, if requested, awarding costs. The Chair of the Bench would probably only be able to consider grounds of 'mitigation', which might enable them to discount the penalty which they impose.

That's the hard news.

There are still alternatives, and it is always possible for a Prosecutor to consider an 'Out of Court' settlement right up to the minute before your case is listed for hearing. Now the most effective way of acheiving this is to instruct a solicitor with regular experience in Criminal Defence work in the local Magistrates' Court, as they will be fully aware of the protocols and conventions in negotiating on behalf of their clients. So my first reccomendation is to advise instructing a solicitor to do just that for you.

If you can't or won't, then you can attend the Court early, about 30mins before the first case listed by that Company's prosecutor, and attempt to negotiate yourself. Now you can simply plea for sympathy, which amounts to an offer to take it or leave it, so for that to be an attractive option, you must consider offering more that the Company would be requesting in costs from the Court.
If you want to negotiate, then you need to consider what strengths and weaknesses there are in allowing the matter to proceed without a settlement - and those are more numerous if you explain that you are going to change your plea to 'Not Guilty', with all the delays, costs and risks which follow. That is not a position I'd advise an innexperienced negotiator to put themselves in.

But the quick reply, is, yes, you can still reach a negotiated settlement - in theory anyway. Try calling the Prosecutions' Office again and explain that you want to try to reach a mutually beneficial outcome. If that fails, attend the Court and try again before the Court sits for the morning.
Alternativly, get a professional to do it for you - it's their job, it's what they do regularly, they know most of the people concerned and their negotiating style, and (hopefully) it is a job that they are good at.

Good luck

 

[yorkie]

Thanks for your advice, the court date is only 2 days away and I rang the prosecution and asked if it could be dealt with through the civil court and they said that they couldn't due to it being a criminal offence.

That's correct.

With regards to the penalty fare, their website states that a penalty fare can be given if a person over the age of 15 travels using a child rate ticket.

That's also correct, if someone was to make a mistake and travel with a child ticket, a Penalty Fare can be charged.

However if someone is intending to avoid payment of the correct fare, that is an offence, for which a Penalty Fare isn't appropriate (although, in practice, can still be charged)

Arriva Trains Wales don't charge Penalty Fares anyway so it's not actually applicable to this particular journey.

I also didn't travel I attempted to and on numerous occasions offered to pay the full fare. But i guess they are completely within their rights to charge me however they see fit.

That's also correct.

An "attempt to travel on a railway without having previously paid [your] fare, and with intent to avoid payment" is an offence under the Regulation of Railways Act. See our Fares Guide 8.2 Current Framework - Railway Specific Legislation for more information.

I'm sorry this isn't what you wanted to hear, but it's better that you learn of this now, while it may still be possible to settle the matter out of court.

 

[DaisyWilliams]

Thank you so much that response was so helpful! I've just rang the prosecution again and they said that it is possible to request an out of court settlement but it must be in writing. They advised sending an email with an attachment of my signature which is what I have done. So what you're saying is that if that fails I should attend court but arrive early and ask again if it would be possible for an out of court settlement and this would be best done with the help of a solicitor? I sought legal advice from a free clinic and the lady advised me to ring and ask if they could switch to using the civil court process (which I did and was unsuccessful) judging by what you're saying the solicitor should really have known that was not possible? She said I was more than capable of representing myself although I could hire her for the sum of £250. If the information she provided me with is incorrect then I'm not sure if she would be worth hiring? Now that it looks almost certain that I cannot live and work in Australia because of this criminal record I will do absolutely anything and everything possible to not have this conviction.

 

[ian959]

With respect of your specific question regarding a criminal conviction preventing you from living and working in Australia, the short answer is no, it would be unlikely to affect such options in the future. The only criminal offences that would specifically bar you from entry into Australia are in relation to crimes against children as far as I am aware. Serious offences for which a custodial sentence was the result would likely also bar you from entry into Australia. A minor conviction under the Byelaws would not prevent entry into Australia but it would have to be declared on your visa application whether it was spent or not.

 

[bb21]

A minor conviction under the Byelaws would not prevent entry into Australia but it would have to be declared on your visa application whether it was spent or not.

In this case it will not be a conviction under the Byelaws.

 

[DaveNewcastle]

. . . She said I was more than capable of representing myself although I could hire her for the sum of £250. If the information she provided me with is incorrect then I'm not sure if she would be worth hiring? Now that it looks almost certain that I cannot live and work in Australia because of this criminal record I will do absolutely anything and everything possible to not have this conviction.

What's in the balance here? An undeterminate increase in the prospect of avoiding that Criminal prosecution for a known cost of £250, versus the unknown probability from negotiating an OoC settlement by yourself which if unsuccessful results in Prosecution.

It seems to me that you increase the odds by agreeding to the £250 and in the process you incur no increased risk.
Do it! Quickly.

 

[ian959]

In this case it will not be a conviction under the Byelaws.

Apologies, misread the OP. It remains however a non-custodial conviction in all probability so the basic fact remains that it is unlikely to impact the ability to live and work in Australia.