Michael Thompson, a 64 year old pensioner with no previous convictions now finds himself a convicted criminal because he flashed his headlights to warn drivers of a speed trap up ahead.

Grimsby Magistrates convicted him of wilfully obstructing a policewoman in the execution of her duty and fined him a total of £440 including costs and ‘Victim surcharge’.

Many campaigners complain that the police are more interested in raising money than increasing road safety and this would appear to give some support to that point of view.

By flashing the other drivers he was not just warning them of a speed trap but causing them to slow down. Isn’t that the alleged purpose of a speed camera? So Mr Thompson has in fact joined forces with the police and helped them slow motorists down.

His ‘civic duty’ as he referred to is has cost him £440.

The next time I see kids about to spray paint on a wall I shall think twice about telling them to stop and instead wait until they have committed the crime so that the police can arrest them just in case I am accused of wilfully obstructing a police officer.

Tags: speed cameras