Covid Exercise Distance

[eve1974]

Well “how close is close to home”.

I got a polite warning today for walking dogs in an area that’s a ten min drive away.

Next time was told it will be a fine.

It’s (honestly!) the first time I’ve walked the dogs in an area that isn’t on my immediate doorstep ... but I believe(d) ten min drive away was still “close”.

[bobbinwales]

ten minute drive sounds live maybe 5 miles which seems along way to me

[sherrardk]

I thought you were supposed to begin and end your exercise from your home?

[pastafreak]

Here, a 10 minute drive might get from where I live to the city centre...that's 1.5 miles.

[eve1974]

But that’s where it’s open to interpretation.... cos 5 miles isn’t far in my opinion.... but that’s just it ,.. a personal
“Opinion”...

I won’t do it again tho ... don’t want to intentionally break rules.

Cop was very polite and he has a thankless task atm

[Peter Pedant]

it boils down to - - unless you wanna argue your case in court
you bedda comply

[drmorgans]

Isn't the argument about what is "reasonable". So if you live next to a park or fields, then it's reasonable to walk the dog there. But if you have no alternative than to drive, say in a city centre with no park, then a drive could be okay.

[david small]

10 minutes drive. 2-3 miles perfectly reasonable. Jobsworth encounter. I assume you kept your distance from others.

[Canary42]

Join a Football League club - they go all over the country to exercise.

[237SJ]

outdoor exercise. This should be done locally wherever possible, but you can travel a short distance within your area to do so if necessary (for example, to access an open space)

From the Gov site

[iluvmargie]

Thank God I never see any cops round here whilst out with my dog!

[New Judge]

//ten minute drive sounds live maybe 5 miles which seems along way to me//

No it isn’t. There are no restrictions. Look up the case of the two ladies from Derbyshire a couple of weeks ago which concluded with the National Police Chiefs' Council advising forces that, as the law stands, there was no restriction on how far you can travel to exercise.

//I thought you were supposed to begin and end your exercise from your home?//

What makes you think that?

//I won’t do it again tho ... don’t want to intentionally break rules.

You’re not breaking any rules.

//Cop was very polite and he has a thankless task atm//

Doesn’t matter how polite he was – he was out of order.

There was a report from CPS published today. It stated that every single person prosecuted under the Coronavirus Act was wrongly charged, with police making blunders in hundreds of cases. In many cases police officers muddled up the law which allows them to “remove or detain a suspected infectious person” with separate Health Protection Regulations which say you cannot be outside of your home without a reasonable excuse (which it seems the officer in eve’s case was trying to enforce, albeit unlawfully). The scale of unlawful prosecutions revealed by the CPS has shocked lawyers. Kirsty Brimelow, QC called it a “systematic failure resulting from police and Ministers mixing up law and guidance.” Hopefully Ms Brimelow’s remarks will carry more weight than mine as I’ve been saying the same thing for weeks, if not months.

So next time, eve, if you’re “politely” threatened with a Fixed Penalty (not a fine, incidentally) you can politely tell the officer that you won’t be paying and you will see him in court.

[margarettom]

I think the problem is you are not supposed to drive anywhere without a good reason and that’s why you were stopped.

[New Judge]

//outdoor exercise. This should be done locally wherever possible, but you can travel a short distance within your area to do so if necessary (for example, to access an open space)

From the Gov site//

Which is guidance, not law (see above).

[New Judge]

//I think the problem is you are not supposed to drive anywhere without a good reason and that’s why you were stopped.//

No. The problem is that the law is misunderstood by many people. Among those are police officers who, by now, should know better. There is nothing that says "you are not supposed to drive anywhere without a good reason". The law says you must not leave home or remain outside without a reasonable excuse. Among the non-exhaustive list of reasonable excuses is taking exercise. There are no restrictions on where you go to do that.

[ichkeria]

Exactly NJ.
Sadly most people probably including myself would not be brave enough to take this to court

[carolegif]

We live near the sea, however, we live high up! I can walk down the hill to the seafront and walk along the seafront as it is fairly flat. Walking back up is a different matter altogether as it is a steep curving hill. We have to drive down which is less than 5 mins. Someone living nearby was told not to travel but walk from home. After walking around the block for nearly a year I need a good walk!

[bednobs]

Where do you live carole? You've been very unfortunate to be limited to waling round the block for nearly a year - most of us here in th UK were let back into real life in the summer when restrictions were lifted

[New Judge]

//Sadly most people probably including myself would not be brave enough to take this to court//

Exactly, ikky, which it makes it all the more outrageous. I become absolutely furious when I read some of the things that are going on in a country which is supposed to be governed by the rule of law, not by what individual government ministers or police officers believe should be the rules.

It is becoming quite clear that many of these restrictions are in for the long haul and once the NHS has been "saved" the government will move on to a new slogan aimed at preventing anybody and everybody from contracting Covid. If that's to be the case, the very least that can be done is to train police officers so they do not threaten people with "fines" for not breaking the law.

[Sqad]

NJ.....is there such a thing as a "Law of Reasonability? "

e.g to punish someone who is NOT breaking the law but in exceptional circumstances it is "reasonable " to do so.

[New Judge]

//NJ.....is there such a thing as a "Law of Reasonability? "//

Not to my knowledge, Sqad. I don't quite know how a court would punish somebody who had committed no offence. It happens in some other countries where the rule of law does not particularly apply. Of course it's not like that here - but it will be if people allow it to.