More motorists in Warwickshire cite medieval laws in bid to escape fines

There has been an increase in the number of people in Warwickshire trying to avoid speeding penalties by claiming UK laws do not apply to them.

The county's police force said there had been 20 attempts in 2022-23 to claim they were answerable only to their interpretations of "common law".

None of the attempts have been successful in the courts, it said.

In the most recent incident a car owner also demanded millions of pounds from the force.

That man ended up getting six points on his licence on 8 June, along with fines and costs totalling more than £1,000.

However, Warwickshire Police said he could have avoided that outcome as he had been eligible for a speed awareness course instead.

The man had been prosecuted for failing to reveal the identity of the driver after his vehicle was seen doing 58mph in a 50mph zone.

Instead of confirming the identity, the force said he "decided to send numerous documents quoting medieval laws and customs".

He is not alone, with similar attempts up in the last year, compared with 2021-22, Warwickshire Police said.

The motorists have tried to claim they are "sovereign citizens", often citing obsolete laws, claiming not to be answerable to any laws of the land.

It is a general approach that seems to have emerged in the United States decades ago.

However, there has been a particular rise in the number of people referring to "sovereign citizen" and "freeman on the land" conspiracy theories since the emergence of Covid-19.

Past incidents have seen anti-vax activists, for example, citing defunct medieval laws, while claiming to be "common law constables" as they attempted to remove coronavirus patients from hospitals and protest outside schools.

Insp Dave Valente said: "Drivers who respond with extensive demands based on ancient medieval customs, will not evade prosecution."

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