No second chance for ex-councillor as taxi licence bid is rejectedTHE criminal record of a former councillor and nightclub bouncer came back to haunt him on Friday when, for the second time this year, he was refused a taxi driver’s licence.
David Richardson, 57, was deemed not to be a fit and proper person to hold such a permit by the Civic Government Licensing Committee of Scottish Borders Council.
But it took the casting vote of chairman Willie Archibald to scupper the bid after the committee was split 3-3.
Mr Richardson first entered public life as a community councillor in his native Hawick in 1980 and was elected to Roxburgh District Council in 1989. He went on to represent Burnfoot and Mansfield as an Independent on Scottish Borders Council until 2007, choosing not to seek re-election after claiming: “It’s a thankless job with a lot of back-stabbing”.
However, his career as a councillor was cited by his solicitor Briony Cruden as evidence of his good character as she made an impassioned plea on his behalf.
“Mr Richardson is trying to leave his past behind him and move on,” said Ms Cruden. “A taxi driver’s licence will allow him to find gainful employment and move on with his life.”
Mr Richardson first applied for a licence last November and, in January, the committee voted 4-3 for refusal.
He was granted legal aid to appeal that decision and, at a preliminary court hearing at Selkirk in March when the council was not represented, Sheriff Peter Paterson upheld the appeal and ordered the committee to reconsider the application afresh.
Friday’s meeting at Newtown heard that Police Scotland could not support the application, Inspector Mike Hodge citing Mr Richardson’s five previous convictions.
The first occurred in 1979 when, as a 21-year-old, Mr Richardson served six months of a nine month jail sentence for a serious assault.
In 1996, he was admonished after admitting a breach of the peace and, five years later, he was fined £350 at Jedburgh Sheriff Court for a similar offence.
In 2004, while still a councillor, Mr Richardson was convicted of assaulting a 19-year-old man at Diesels night club in Hawick. He was fined £200 for the assault and ordered to pay £300 compensation to his victim.
“This crime related to Mr Richardson working as a bouncer…when he carried out an unprovoked attack on a male who suffers from cerebral palsy by punching him on the face,” reported Inspector Hodge.
Finally, he recounted how Mr Richardson had been fined £130 in May, 2005, for speeding at 85.2mph on the A7 near Hawick.
Ms Cruden said the “most serious offence” on the list was the one committed 35 years ago when her client was a young man. She asked the committee to note that the two breach of the peace charges had been dealt with by an admonition and a monetary penalty.
Ms Cruden took issue with the subjective tone of the police account of the 2004 nightclub assault.
“The police are using emotive language suggesting that the victim was picked on because he had cerebral palsy and that is simply not the case,” said Ms Cruden. “When you meet the victim, he comes across as normally able.
“Mr Richardson was not working as a bouncer on that particular day and my client contends that the assault, which he deeply regrets, was not unprovoked. There are two sides to every story.”
Ms Cruden said her client was a nightclub bouncer for 25 years and, while acting in that capacity, was not responsible for any criminal activity.
On the speeding offence, she said Mr Richardson, who is now unemployed, was working as a sales rep at the time, clocking up 800 miles a week.
“He regrets the speeding conviction from over nine years ago, but there has been nothing since to show that his driving is, in any way, unreliable,” she added. “He has never been banned from driving and now has a clean licence.”
Ms Cruden suggested the committee could grant the taxi driver’s licence for a provisional trial period of six months.
Councillor Gavin Logan (Con) said that being a councillor was not in itself a testimony to good character and he was concerned about a “pattern of offending” going back to 1979.
He claimed that driving at 85.2mph in a 60mph zone was “well beyond the bounds of acceptability”.
Councillor Bill White (Ind) was also opposed to the application, citing Mr Richardson’s “pattern of aggression”.
But Tory councillor Tom Weatherston told the committee: “I cannot say for certain if Mr Richardson is a fit and proper person [to hold a taxi-driver’s licence] but I note he has not offended for nearly 10 years and I am inclined to give him a second chance.”
And Jim Torrance (SNP) agreed. “Most of the people I know who were aggressive as young men are no longer aggressive and the fact he has been of good behaviour for a decade says a lot. Let’s give him the benefit of the doubt.”
On a division, the committee, with just six of its 11 members attending, were split 3-3 on Mr Weatherston’s motion to grant the licence, with chairman Willie Archibald (SNP) casting in favour of refusal.
After the meeting, Mr Richardson told the Border Telegraph: “It’s heartbreaking really. Of course I’ve made mistakes in the past and it seems I can’t escape them.
“I only wanted the chance to support myself, but it looks like it’s back to bread and water.”
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