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My friend was prosecuted for undertaking - is this entrapment?

A friend was recently prosecuted for dangerous driving, for undertaking an unmarked police car. The A23 is, at that point, a two-lane dual carriageway. With no traffic in sight my friend followed an Audi at 50mph in lane two. He and at least two others then passed on the nearside and all were subsequently 'nicked'. Is this not entrapment?

We suspect points quota achievement by the traffic cop. The penalty was £1000, a 12 month ban and 100 hours of community service. My friend is now unemployed, carless and broke. Whilst he admits an offence, the penalty appears outrageously heavy and the apparent entrapment ignored.

Asked on 30 June 2012 by RM, via email

Answered by Honest John
Undertaking is not a specific offence and never was. So something else had to make it 'dangerous driving' for the charge to stick. It could be that if your friend was in lane two, and lane one was vacant the whole time, then he moved to lane one in order to 'undertake'. In that circumstance it could be construed as dangerous driving because he cannot use the defence he was driving in the correct lane (lane one) and the car in lane two was driving inappropriately slowly in lane two.

It would be good for a case like this to be appealed to the Supreme Court so that passing on the nearside could be clearly legalised or not. It's hopeless relying on decisions by stroppy coppers and useless magistrates.
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