Street racing charge

[V8KLLR]

My friend and a friend of a friend have been charged with street racing and speeding in excess of 30km.

The story straight up no bs, is that they were not racing. They were on the highway and there is an inclination. 100m before the start of the incline. Person B eggs Person A [my friend] on. Person A joins in. The speed limit is 70km/h they play show off/copy cat and both reach 90km. They maintain that speed for 75m until the crest of the hill. They didnt try to overtake eachother. Person B decides to slow down once he reaches the crest. Upon reaching the crest he sees a RBT. Both are charged. They were calm and co-operative. Told the police that they were in the wrong and speeding. Police officer suspends their licence for a month and vehicle. The police have no evidence. Only the statements given. There is no visual on them racing, and no speed camera or radar only that they 'heard them' Court case in a month. Police officer said himself that " You both seem to be good guys that have just made a mistake. Everyone does it, you've just done it on the wrong night' He also says that they'd get an approx $1000 fine and theyd have to pay for their cars towing and impounding and that'd be the end of it as it is both their first major offence

Has anyone had experience with this? Person A is sh!tting himself. He had a speeding ticket 4 months ago 20km over the limit and a series of minor traffic offences. His a good guy and knows he made a mistake.

He has sought legal advice from a lawyer and they dropped the line of "12 month suspension".

Please no "he deserves it" "or fast and the furious 5 wannabe etc" I wouldnt post this up if I didnt think it was abit unfair. Two guys going 20km over the limit and have no intention of beating the other person or going any faster get slugged with street racing which is a criminal offence?

[louie]

too many times i hear these stories, a friend of mine was "caught" drag racing during a mini car cruise with a couple of friends ( we were all going under the speed limit) .... its just that they have the power to say "they" were racing. only thing you could do is take it to court and fight it and get away with no offences...

[trism]

1. Cops word wins every time without hard evidence against it. That's why they are police.
2. Egging on, showing off, speeding, is bad to start with. Two cars doing it next to each other is street racing. Thems the the rules, deal with it.

[TheSaint]

lol thats a pretty crap lawyer man

i would advise to state all the facts admitting speed numbers and the whole story - make sure it is similar to the other persons story but not the same

ask the police prosecutor and magistrate if he can plead to a charge of speeding - but not the other stuff - if not - ask for it to be adjourned to seek legal advice but also ask that he retains his license - as the offense wasnt that bad and he is innocent until proven guilty

usually if the police dont have mutch evidence and they know they dont have a case - but it looks like the defendant is going to take it to trial - they will accept a negotiated lesser charge - because they dont want to waste the magistrates time

also - the magic number for hooning is 45km/h over - anything under that and it is a fine and points

[V8KLLR]

Cheers Louie thats definitely what the two are doing.
Trism- 1. Thats what I thought until I asked my friend who's uncle is a senior police officer of some sort and he said they have no leg to stand on with no radar/camera
2. Fair enough. Thanks for the input.

[TheSaint]

i have just been done on a fixed camera for speeding on the way to see my old man who was dying in hospital
i will plead to what i believe i was doing - but i do not believe i was over the 'hoon' limit as they allege

i cant afford to loose my licence for 12months over something this petty - and i have a clean record + all points

so my lawyer is trying to negotiate pleading to just speeding + fine + points - otherwise im taking it to trial

[1590cc]

True story bro. Happened to a friend of a friend of mine :)

[V8KLLR]

lol thats a pretty crap lawyer man

i would advise to state all the facts admitting speed numbers and the whole story - make sure it is similar to the other persons story but not the same

ask the police prosecutor and magistrate if he can plead to a charge of speeding - but not the other stuff - if not - ask for it to be adjourned to seek legal advice but also ask that he retains his license - as the offense wasnt that bad and he is innocent until proven guilty

usually if the police dont have mutch evidence and they know they dont have a case - but it looks like the defendant is going to take it to trial - they will accept a negotiated lesser charge - because they dont want to waste the magistrates time

also - the magic number for hooning is 45km/h over - anything under that and it is a fine and points

Thank you very much for the info!

[TheSaint]

Cheers Louie thats definitely what the two are doing.
Trism- 1. Thats what I thought until I asked my friend who's uncle is a senior police officer of some sort and he said they have no leg to stand on with no radar/camera
2. Fair enough. Thanks for the input.

exactly right - i have a family freind who is a seniour sergent (oldschool dude - doesnt take BS) he says that if ur being an idiot than fare enough - but harmless stuff like this with no evidence is just a waste of everyones time

[jeremydawg]

well... you break the law, you get caught, you confess, you get charged. simple as that. I doubt the cops would give the smallest piece of ant shite wether they are "good guys" or not.

Maybe if they denied breaking the law and the officers couldnt prove it they couldve gotten away with it

[TheSaint]

well... you break the law, you get caught, you confess, you get charged. simple as that. I doubt the cops would give the smallest piece of ant shite wether they are "good guys" or not.

Maybe if they denied breaking the law and the officers couldnt prove it they couldve gotten away with it

it does actually go to your favor if the policeman writing the report and filing the paper work is in a good mood or not
can make a small thing large or a large thing small in court =/

[V8KLLR]

exactly right - i have a family freind who is a seniour sergent (oldschool dude - doesnt take BS) he says that if ur being an idiot than fare enough - but harmless stuff like this with no evidence is just a waste of everyones time

Hopefully the magistrate doesnt rule with an iron fist and see's that its harmless aswell


well... you break the law, you get caught, you confess, you get charged. simple as that.

Maybe if they denied breaking the law and the officers couldnt prove it they couldve gotten away with it

Yea thats pretty much what person A said in retrospect.

[louie]

lol u bs to them and they find out your screwed, no doubt.

[Nepolian]

well... you break the law, you get caught, you confess, you get charged. simple as that. I doubt the cops would give the smallest piece of ant shite wether they are "good guys" or not.

Maybe if they denied breaking the law and the officers couldnt prove it they couldve gotten away with it

^ Tell it like it is mate :thumbsup:

From what I have read, it sounds kinda like racing and it was on the street? really is it not!?

Does it really have to be over 45kph to be street racing?

Anywhooo, end of the day. If you really think you have been hard done by, get yourself a solicitor and take i to court. Just realise that it can go pear shape for you (your friend) as well.

[V8KLLR]

^ Tell it like it is mate :thumbsup:

From what I have read, it sounds kinda like racing and it was on the street? really is it not!?

Does it really have to be over 45kph to be street racing?

Anywhooo, end of the day. If you really think you have been hard done by, get yourself a solicitor and take i to court. Just realise that it can go pear shape for you (your friend) as well.

Yes his been told that aswell. Thanks for the quick responses. Ill just pass it on that he should get a good lawyer and fight it even if its a small chance cause the police prosecutor would eat him alive if he doesnt.

[l__i__l]

let's see what evidence we have here;

-no record of speed
-cop didn't see anything

His evidence is he "heard" them but yet can't prove it was them he heard.
If he saw them doing it, his word will win every time. but hearing it from over a crest? Gtfo

as long as they didnt admit to anything any lawyer who specializes in traffic offenses will have it thrown out of court.

usually sending a summons to appear in court will have them drop it.

[Indie]

His a good guyWhat is this supposed to mean?

Anyway, they were speeding, and speeding in tandem "egging each other on", which is more dangerous than regular speeding. When you're concentrating on your friend's car, you're not focusing on the road. It is street racing, whether or not overtaking or a finish line is involved.

They confessed to speeding, despite the lack of evidence. Therefore, they are now considered guilty, despite the lack of radar gun.

Don't break the speed limit on public roads, and you won't get fined/suspended. Tooling around with another car should be kept to the track, not the street. It's that simple.

[TheSaint]

+1 rep for you

good advice

[V8KLLR]

let's see what evidence we have here;

-no record of speed
-cop didn't see anything

His evidence is he "heard" them but yet can't prove it was them he heard.
If he saw them doing it, his word will win every time. but hearing it from over a crest? Gtfo

as long as they didnt admit to anything any lawyer who specializes in traffic offenses will have it thrown out of court.

usually sending a summons to appear in court will have them drop it.

Yea they did admit to speeding. So they're pretty much stuffed? Is it possible for a lawyer to negotiate it down to a speeding fine or negligent driving?
Whats a summons? Is that when you get the police officer to come to the court house? The police officer said he'd be there.

[Nepolian]

Yea they did admit to speeding. So they're pretty much stuffed? Is it possible for a lawyer to negotiate it down to a speeding fine or negligent driving?
Whats a summons? Is that when you get the police officer to come to the court house? The police officer said he'd be there.

Well, the guys have been charged and unless the go guilty, everyone will go to court. Given the currently environment in regards to speeding and street racing etc...and the circumstances of this particular story, I'd say the police would be quite happy taking it to court :(

[TheSaint]

start by trying to negotiate - failing that - ask for an adjournment to get legal advice
at least that will buy you a couple of months to prepare either a guilty plea or take it to trial

[tripleuse]

still dont know why people admit to speeding without evidence, its just asking to get ****ed over.

[Lukey]

still dont know why people admit to speeding without evidence, its just asking to get ****ed over.

this.

[dougie_504]

'Good guys' can still kill people breaking the law, and having a history of speeding and other 'minor traffic offences' won't help, especially after they confessed everything.

Just give them good advice - deal with the consequences and try to be mature enough to understand that the law isn't there to put them down but to protect every other person doing the right thing. There's no excuses and there's no come-back to that kind of reality check.

The only thing they can do is try to have the charges and suspensions reduced (alleged speed etc).

[Indie]

Whatever they do, taking it to court is not a good option. It very rarely ends well.

[gach2]

No offence
but your mates must be dead set idiot

from what i get from your story a copper 'heard' them race (that means he has no evidence that 2 cars were even next to each other)

secondly there was no evidence of speeding (he didnt even see it, and if he did, it doesnt matter coppas dont have a special power of getting an accurate or even approximate speed reading through there eyesight)

But what got your mates ****ed is that they admitted they were wrong (i dunno what they admitted other than they were speeding), this most likely would have been captured on police audio survellience, which means if they go to court, it would show up as evidence of something wrong happening

for future reference my advice (take this at your own risk), unless what you did is completely wrong, or there is proper evidence (radar gun, even video survelience is not proper evidence), do not confess your mistake (at the same time do not argue with the coppa), eg if your doing 85-90 in a 70 zone say your not 100% sure but you 'think' 75-80, that way if they dont have proof you did more then there gonna let you go. Obviously if your doing 100 then you cant say that but you could try 85-90 and say you are wrong (if they have a radar gun) and if your doing 120 in a 70 zone if they got video survelience (with a reference to there speedometre) then your def speeding and admit to doing around 100 (as there vid cams arent very accurate)

the reason why the coppa said your mates are good guys is because they fell into their trap,
i mean if he thought that genuinely why does he think they were street racing
good guys dont street race
only hoons

[l__i__l]

yep coppers usually trap people by asking;

do you know how fast u were going?- which usually means they didnt get u on the radar

ALWAYS say yes i was doing the speed limit.

[Alexplicit]

I'm going to have to agree with the majority of people on here, i myself have gone through a hoon stage, and i have payed for my mistakes, i don't get harassed anymore, purely because i don't let other drivers on the road get the better of me, if someone wants to be a fool so be it.

after the trial or whatever happens ask your friend if he has learnt from the mistake he made, that one time you get the feeling to be stupid, don't, You never know whats hiding over that hill.

sorry to be so blatant. good luck to your friends!

Alex

[Nepolian]

yep coppers usually trap people by asking;

do you know how fast u were going?- which usually means they didnt get u on the radar

ALWAYS say yes i was doing the speed limit.

Interesting how use the term 'trap' how is it a trap if it is a legitimate questions and hells no if you actually tell the truth and get 'TRAPPED"!

[Foxx]

Seriously - how all went wrong is when your mates admitted they were wrong - that is a NO NO - they f**cked up big time

[will13]

also - the magic number for hooning is 45km/h over - anything under that and it is a fine and points

Saint, the OP is NSW based so the magic number for him is 30km/h - 44km/h (big fine + 3 month suspension)

45km/h + (bigger fine + 6 month suspension, i think its on the spot too)

[dc2r-0636]

as everyone else has said, should never have admitted to anything.

if they take it to court they have no chance of winning. its your word against theres.

[Indie]

Saint, the OP is NSW based so the magic number for him is 30km/h - 44km/h (big fine + 3 month suspension)

45km/h + (bigger fine + 6 month suspension, i think its on the spot too)In Victoria, 30-35km/h over the limit is $450 and 6 months.

[dougie_504]

In Victoria, 30-35km/h over the limit is $450 and 6 months.


I think it's anything more than 25km/hour over the limit, and yeah it's 6 months or an optional 1-year good-behaviour bond which becomes a 1 year suspension if you get a single demerit point during that time (and you can be sure you'll be targeted during that time too).

[will13]

Not in nsw.

[dougie_504]

Yeah sorry I was responding to Indie, should have made that clearer...

[will13]

all good

so whats the process for going to court? and is it costly? has anyone done it?

[quangsuke]

all good

so whats the process for going to court? and is it costly? has anyone done it?

in melbourne, got caught doing 170+ (not me) on radar, first offence, student, fine of $250 and licenses suspended for 1 year. restarts on green p's

[V8KLLR]

all good

so whats the process for going to court? and is it costly? has anyone done it?

Well for my friend. His got already a definite 500-600 impounding and towing charge. Approx 1100 fine most likely.
He was only going max 20km over so hopefully will get the good behaviour driving bond. Plus the cops made him damage his bumper. 300 to fix most likely.
All up close to 2000 he has to pay. Most expensive 6 seconds of his life.

Are there any other charges his got to be aware of? I'd also like to know.

[jdm18c]

impounding fee will be way more than that aye, how long they impound it for?

[Nepolian]

What, they made him damage his bumper??

[V8KLLR]

impounding fee will be way more than that aye, how long they impound it for?

One month. The going rate is $11 a day I think. Plus approx $200 for the towing to a top secret metro impound lot. Hopefully it wont be any longer.


What, they made him damage his bumper??

Yes the police made him go up a steep slope of a dodgy driveway and drive into a park. His car was lowered. 2 finger gap front and back. He begged, implored, plead, grovelled etc to reverse up. Police officer took a real nasty tone with him and said "YOU WILL DO AS I SAY". So he drives up, police officer doesnt see a big arse rock and his bumper broke.

[jdm18c]

lol there is one at wetherial park that they keep some impounded cars at

[TheSaint]

my impound fee was $800 and the towing yard damaged my car extensively - my lawyer is dealing with the whole thing for me in court

im willing to plead at a lessor charge of speeding or accept a good behavior bond

the towing yard will also be made to cover damages on my car

having a clean record and admitting to speeding for reasons of seeing my old man on his death bed have helped me though i still dont know what the outcome is going to be
i admit that i was speeding - but the speed they allege is ridiculous - my passenger at the time (a sensible, older family friend - would never allow me to do such a thing)

i expect the fine to be $500 - $1000 and legal fees will most likely be around $2000

so meh ... sux eh lol

[V8KLLR]

my impound fee was $800 and the towing yard damaged my car extensively - my lawyer is dealing with the whole thing for me in court

im willing to plead at a lessor charge of speeding or accept a good behavior bond

the towing yard will also be made to cover damages on my car

having a clean record and admitting to speeding for reasons of seeing my old man on his death bed have helped me though i still dont know what the outcome is going to be
i admit that i was speeding - but the speed they allege is ridiculous - my passenger at the time (a sensible, older family friend - would never allow me to do such a thing)

i expect the fine to be $500 - $1000 and legal fees will most likely be around $2000

so meh ... sux eh lol

WOW WTF they damaged your car? Which impound lot is this?

[TheSaint]

small place down in south west australia - cant name and shame for legal reasons atm

[matthai]

Yeah it will be on your criminal record. this has happen to myself, you wont win against the words of the coppers because pretty much every wrong move is pretty much frown upon.
What happen was that i went to court to get my car back from the impound after 2 weeks. 200 something
Next i went into court for the verdict and offered to do a Traffics Offender Program were my case was adjourned to a later date
After the program i was due back in court were i received a 10 month suspension and 1100 for promote/take part in street race and negligent driving.
The other person received a much smaller fine due to a clear record. Since i had minor offences on my record, the court gave me a larger fine.

so on my behalf, i would say person A is in for quite a large fine and a 1 year suspension.
If he's case is held at the Fairfield court i would say, hope that you get the male judge and ask if you could do a traffic offenders program and after that hope that you get the male judge again to do the final verdict because he's pretty lenient. If you get female judge your pretty much screwed lol this is from my experience anyways, hope this helps

[trism]

Yeah it will be on your criminal record. this has happen to myself, you wont win against the words of the coppers because pretty much every wrong move is pretty much frown upon.


this coming first hand from someone.

and what did i ****ing say right at the start.


1. Cops word wins every time without hard evidence against it. That's why they are police.
2. Egging on, showing off, speeding, is bad to start with. Two cars doing it next to each other is street racing. Thems the the rules, deal with it.

this is why mother****ers shouldnt ****ing doubt what i say.

i am ALWAYS right.

[will13]

calm down bro

havent you seen that thing in the lols thread about how many ozhomo's it takes to do stuff lol

[trism]

its funny coz its true

[Mikecivic78]

Wow, interesting thread. Ive never heard of this type of thing in QLD, the good 'ol sunshine state.

I do not condone street racing, but seriously, if the cops get you, don't admit to shit. If the cops made him destroy his rear bar, they should be sued! Lawyer up and fcuk those dirty coppers.

Cops once stopped me revving my b16a out at the lights up to the 70km speed limit (quick shift from 1st at cutout and just a little squirt in 2nd).It was on a lane that ended just after the lights. Copper said I shouldnt drive so fast, I said I let go at 70KM/H. Then copper said I had failed to indicate when merging, breathalised me and told me to have a good day and drive safely. Maybe he was a motoring enthusiast, or maybe QLD cops are a bit more tolerant.

[TheSaint]

traffic offenses don't go on your criminal record - they go on a traffic record

to get a criminal record for a traffic offense it has to be like 'dangerous driving occasioning grievous bodily harm' - in other words someone has to loose a limb etc

i got charged for 'dangerous driving occasioning bodily harm' because i broke my own ankles - but its not a criminal offense until its 'grievous' etc etc

and trism ... calm down ... lol

[V8KLLR]

Yeah it will be on your criminal record. this has happen to myself, you wont win against the words of the coppers because pretty much every wrong move is pretty much frown upon.
What happen was that i went to court to get my car back from the impound after 2 weeks. 200 something
Next i went into court for the verdict and offered to do a Traffics Offender Program were my case was adjourned to a later date
After the program i was due back in court were i received a 10 month suspension and 1100 for promote/take part in street race and negligent driving.
The other person received a much smaller fine due to a clear record. Since i had minor offences on my record, the court gave me a larger fine.

so on my behalf, i would say person A is in for quite a large fine and a 1 year suspension.
If he's case is held at the Fairfield court i would say, hope that you get the male judge and ask if you could do a traffic offenders program and after that hope that you get the male judge again to do the final verdict because he's pretty lenient. If you get female judge your pretty much screwed lol this is from my experience anyways, hope this helps

Thanks man. This is the info I was looking for. Is it possible to get a one year good behaviour bond for driving?

Yea I was informed about the evil female magistrate aswell.

[Mikecivic78]

My lawyer mate says it really can depend on the magistrate. You might get a good one, or an anti-hooning nazi.

Luck of the draw, but lawyer can maybe help somewhat.

[V8KLLR]

My friend has been seeking legal advice. Its been unsuccessful, they cant really do much and he cant see the point of paying them over a 1000 if there isnt really a significant change to the outcome. All they have said is try to get the traffic offenders program, 3x character references from people with clean records, a statement, and be well groomed + act remorseful. Which he was gonna do anyway.
I agree its luck off the draw. Not really a fair go cause I dont believe a magistrate should be harsher than the others on a particular subject cause that is bias and that just means its really whether you in the wrong or right, but whether the magistrate is a nazi or not.

[TheSaint]

My friend has been seeking legal advice. Its been unsuccessful, they cant really do much and he cant see the point of paying them over a 1000 if there isnt really a significant change to the outcome. All they have said is try to get the traffic offenders program, 3x character references from people with clean records, a statement, and be well groomed + act remorseful. Which he was gonna do anyway.
I agree its luck off the draw. Not really a fair go cause I dont believe a magistrate should be harsher than the others on a particular subject cause that is bias and that just means its really whether you in the wrong or right, but whether the magistrate is a nazi or not.

there are so many problems with our legal system its not funny ... but i spose its better than nothing =/

i lost faith in it a long time ago

[V8KLLR]

there are so many problems with our legal system its not funny ... but i spose its better than nothing =/

i lost faith in it a long time ago

Yea my belief in it has died aswell. This'll be a good thread when I post up the results of the court trial to serve as a example to ozhonda members now and present.
Lesson one - Dont ever speed. Lesson two - Dont be an idiot and be honest and upfront when a copper questions you expecting a better outcome for your co-operations. Your just dousing yourself in gasoline for the magistrate to burn you over the smallest transgression.

[dougie_504]

Yea my belief in it has died aswell. This'll be a good thread when I post up the results of the court trial to serve as a example to ozhonda members now and present.
Lesson one - Dont ever speed. Lesson two - Dont be an idiot and be honest and upfront when a copper questions you expecting a better outcome for your co-operations. Your just dousing yourself in gasoline for the magistrate to burn you over the smallest transgression.

So he'll just represent himself then? To be honest I don't have a big issue with speeding in general - for me it all depends on how fast you're going, the limit you're breaking, and the area that you're in. If you're doing 120km/hour in a 110km/hour zone out in the country I have no problem with that. Even just having a little squirt here and there is fine by me so long as you can be sure there is nobody else nearby and you're not going way over the top.

But of course at the end of the day you just have to take responsibility, whether it's for a fine or for a life. Fortunately most people here have never seen a person told they're about to die, or actually seen them die, let alone wrap the body. That's why the government uses footage of families and friends who have lost loved ones to persuade those with no exposure. Doesn't sink in sometimes.



Wow, interesting thread. Ive never heard of this type of thing in QLD, the good 'ol sunshine state.

I do not condone street racing, but seriously, if the cops get you, don't admit to shit. If the cops made him destroy his rear bar, they should be sued! Lawyer up and fcuk those dirty coppers.

Cops once stopped me revving my b16a out at the lights up to the 70km speed limit (quick shift from 1st at cutout and just a little squirt in 2nd).It was on a lane that ended just after the lights. Copper said I shouldnt drive so fast, I said I let go at 70KM/H. Then copper said I had failed to indicate when merging, breathalised me and told me to have a good day and drive safely. Maybe he was a motoring enthusiast, or maybe QLD cops are a bit more tolerant.

In VIC this is considered an 'Exhibition of Acceleration' and is a traffic offence, along with other vague things like 'Intentionally Losing Traction in one or more Tyres'.

[TheSaint]

exhibition of acceleration??

so my D15b7 screams its head off (not overly loud - but lots of revs) but probably struggles to make it to 90km/h with the same effort of a commodore v6 at half throttle ... so do i still get done for this offense? - car modding is getting technical - i think the law needs to catch up with it

after my accident that put me in a wheelchair for 12months - it really hit home what it feels like to hit something travelling over 50km/h

now as i drive at 110km/h on the country highways and i see the trees go by - it makes me really think that it only would take something small like a stick, a rock or a flat tyre and i would hit one .. and i know what the impact feels like ... it sux

but even after all of that i still enjoy a spirited drive ... but only when its sensible and doesnt break the law ... i rarely speed - thats the joy of having a little 1500cc honda civic - its amazingly fun to drive and you can redline 2 gears before you even get to the speed limit lol

[Mikecivic78]

In VIC this is considered an 'Exhibition of Acceleration' and is a traffic offence, along with other vague things like 'Intentionally Losing Traction in one or more Tyres'.

Wow, that's rough. I guess it's why Mark Webber called VIC the nanny state. You poor bastards.

[TheSaint]

i say we petition the government to build more race tracks in an effort to improve road safety

take ALL the money from the speed cameras that currently goes to politician salaries and fancy cars and put a racetrack in per every 5 towns ... or 1 city etc

its a 4 hour drive to my local track .. and there are only 2 in WA ... sigh

[Indie]

That's not going to help that much. Half the reason some people speed on public roads is to show off in front of regular drivers, and they don't have the patience to bother with a track, or the inclination to spend the money on a visit. People will always drive like dickheads on public roads, up until the moment that they find out the hard way.

Politicians really don't earn that much, either, and they only get driven around in Holdens. The speed cameras are blatant revenue-raising bullshit, but it's not as if we have corrupt, over-paid politicians embezzling all of the money.

[TheSaint]

ah well ... you have to admit - it was a nice try =p

[gach2]

HOLD UP
WHAT DID YOUR MATES ADMIT TO COPS

a coppa word isnt going to overule a normal persons word in court
though 99.9% of time a cop has a listening device for conversations while on duty

so tell your mates to have a good thing of what they told the police
if its just speeding 20kmh over the limit take it to court
speak to a solicitor etc
car should not be impounded
forced to go on a private driveway (or even those police rollers, though if you dont agree to this the car can be defected)

so for all this take it to court should be able to cover the costs
also make sure you put a complaint on the police officer (no one can force you to drive a car)
if you dont get the costs of the damaged bumper take it to insurance along with your police officer complaint

Also im not a lawyer/solicitor etc but it seems like your friends are pretty noob in dealing with the cops
and they need someone good people (lawyer/solicitor/or anyone experience with these cases) to back them up

I am not sure but most likely the police officer has also broken a lot of rules in his actions with this case. This is not very hard to prove (as you do have a witness and this is not the first time a police officer has used his authority uneccesary causing property harm)

I have heard of many (much more serious) cases where police officers have mad similar mistakes in there actions and where the case had to be completely dropped due to the officers action.

Best for you to ask your friends exactly what they told the cops
and find a good solicitor (usually an ex coppa)

[V8KLLR]

If a person is suspected to street racing its instant impounding of vehicle I believe. They've been searching for a good lawyer but they all say the same thing to bring 3 references, and act remorseful plus be well groomed. I had a conversation with this girl who studies policing and law. She says when you speak to the judge, separate yourselves from one another, dont be seem as a team. E.g say I not we. And say that you yourself was speeding an you had no idea of what the other person was doing. The two preresiquites needed to get someone for street racing, is prior organsiation and the association between two people or more and the speeding. They already acknowledged each other but they can save themselves by saying I knew it was my friend after the event but not during. And saying I was speeding up to overtake I had no idea what he was doing.

With the bumper my friend was skirted away and not able to confirm which officer it was and get his name.