HKSAR v. NGAI FAT HOI

HCMA429/98

IN THE HIGH COURT OF THE

HONG KONG SPECIAL ADMINISTRATIVE REGION

COURT OF FIRST INSTANCE

(Appellant Jurisdiction)

MAGISTRACY APPEAL NO.429 OF 1998

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J U D G M E N T

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1. The Appellant appeals against conviction for careless driving. This was a case where the Appellant, on driving his taxi out of a carpark exit and turning right collided, so that the front of his taxi went into contact with the middle part, that is the part between the front and rear wheels, of a public light bus.

2. The Appellant was represented at trial and a statement, which he had made to the police, was put in evidence by agreement. In this statement he said that he had only taken a casual look to his left at the exit, and on seeing no vehicle, had proceeded to turn right into Sun Ma Tau Street. Then during the course of turning out, he suddenly saw the public light bus close to his taxi and braked, but the front nearside of his taxi still ran into the offside bodywork of the public light bus.

3. Now on appeal, the Appellant seeks to say that he only said that he took a casual look as a professional driver and the Magistrate did not understand what he meant. I indicated that, in my view, a casual look is a casual look, and the Appellant said that he had in fact stopped, looked left, right and left before turning to the right.

4. It is, of course, true that in the statement which was put before the learned Magistrate the Appellant did say that he stopped, but nevertheless, it is clear from the sketch plans of the scene that this was the kind of situation where, if the Appellant had taken anything more than a casual look, he must necessarily have seen the public light bus coming towards him, and he should have given way to it because he was coming out of a carpark onto a road. It was open to the Magistrate to find that the Appellant's conduct fell below the standard of an ordinary prudent and competent driver in not looking more than casually to his left in the circumstances.

5. There are no grounds on which this appeal can succeed and it is dismissed.