Shropshire traffic warden jailed over driver row lies

Karl Crompton told police that Edward Phipps had driven into him after a row over the ticket when it was handed out in Bridgnorth High Street in October last year.

Crompton, 43, of Baldwin Webb Avenue, Donnington, had pleaded not guilty to a charge of perverting the course of justice. But he was convicted by a jury following a trial last month.

The 43-year-old appeared at Shrewsbury Crown Court for sentencing today and was sent to prison following a short hearing by Judge Peter Barrie.

The court heard police suspicions were raised about Crompton's allegation when they checked CCTV from outside the Jewel of the Severn pub in the High Street and after interviewing Mr Phipps.

The driver had stopped his Volkswagen Passat outside the pub to pick up a friend. While he was inside the pub, he spotted Crompton putting a ticket on his car. An argument between the pair followed, the court was told.

In his false statement to police, Crompton told a "number of lies" about what happened next, claiming the vehicle had driven into his knees, accelerated, and caused him to roll across the bonnet.

The jury was shown CCTV footage of the incident during the three-day trial.

After the guilty verdict, council bosses revealed they were considering equipping traffic wardens in Shropshire with tiny camera badges in future to record incidents with the public.

Paul McGreary, group manager of public protection and enforcement at Shropshire Council, said it was an "unusual situation" and that bosses were confident it was an isolated case.

He added, however, that it did highlight the pressure traffic wardens were under as they went about their day-to-day duties.

He said at the time of Crompton's conviction that an internal investigation would take place in accordance with the council's disciplinary procedures. Shropshire Council was unavailable for comment at the time of going to press.

"Since this incident, we are also looking at the use of video badges which could prove invaluable in cases like this in future as they would provide video footage of any interaction between an officer and the public," he added.