NSW Removing Negligent Driving from Criminal Record?

[Greg Dubois]

7 years ago I had a motorcycle accident that left me a paraplegic, been unable to get work since, what with my disability and age (65) against me. Fast forward to present I decided to do Uber as a job, got an appropriate age vehicle, had it modified for wheelchair driver and submitted all my documents to Uber and waited for my criminal check to come back, no problems I thought, I’ve never committed any criminal actions (or at least not caught) in my life.

Wrong! On my record was a court conviction for Negligent Driving (Not causing grievous bodily harm or death) in 2010 - fine $1000 with $76 court costs.

Backtrack to 2009 when this happened, I was driving my truck back to base when I hit the back of a parked car. This moved the car about a foot sideways. Unfortunately the owner was standing beside it and got knocked over. She was knocked out and was taken to hospital.

I didn’t get booked at the scene but about 5 weeks later, the policeman who attended the accident visited my place and informed me that the lady was ok, just concussion, but the hospital had taken too long to give the condition of the lady to the police, so they could no longer just give me an infringement notice for neg driving and it would have to go to court, which it did. I plead guilty got my fine, paid it and that was that I thought, until today.

Why is that sitting on my record as a criminal action and can I get it removed (and don’t tell me to just wait 12 months)?

 

[DMLegal]

It varies from state to state however typically convictions aren’t declared ‘spent’ for 10 years. If you want it declared spent earlier you can apply at your local Courthouse.

 

[Tim W]

Why is that sitting on my record as a criminal action...

Because it's a criminal conviction.

Fines imposed by courts are an outcome of conviction.
They are a different legal animal to the amount of an "infringement" (a so-called "on the spot fine") on a "Penaty Notice" ("ticket").

...and can I get it removed (and don’t tell me to just wait 12 months)

In NSW, there's pretty much no way to accelerate the time it takes for a conviction to become spent.

 

[Greg Dubois]

Hang on, so if I get a parking ticket and go to court to fight it and lose, that makes me a criminal. I never got a chance to pay an infringement notice. So my big crime was a hospital taking to long to get some results to the police. I was under this strange believe that we should all be equal in the eyes of the law. If Joblow hits a car and gets an infringement notice for neg driving and pays it, he is NOT a criminal, but I go to court for exactly the same thing and pleed guilty, LOCK ME UP, I’m a criminal. I have about five other traffick offences on my driving record since the Neg Driving, nothing major, 3 less then 10 km over the limit, a use Mobil phone and not wear seat belt, all delt with by infringement notices, and not one of those appear on my CRIMINAL record, and you know why, because they are not CRIMINAL offence. One should not be penalised for going to court, and that’s why I’m being penalised, if I’m wrong I would like to know.

 

[DMLegal]

You're a bit off - your analogies are correct, however your use of 'criminal' is a bit misguided. A speeding, parking or minor motoring offence is typically dealt with by-way of infringement. Negligent driving is not an offence which can be dealt with by infringement, Parliament/Society considers it more serious, therefore it goes on your record. I don't think you can correlate a parking fine with the incident you described above. Not sure what you mean by the hospital taking too long to get some results to the Police. In any event, there is nothing that can be done i'm afraid.