Six rally competitors face deferred driving bans after speeding

Six competitors in the Jyväskylä World Rally have been given temporary driving bans whose enforcement will be delayed until the end of the event, Yle reports. Police also fined seven participants for speeding on road sections between stages during the rally’s first two days.

The drivers are suspected of either endangering traffic safety or aggravated endangerment of traffic safety. Police intervened in speeding offences on Friday and Saturday.

The enforcement of the bans has been postponed until the competition ends. Tatu Hyttinen, an assistant professor of criminal law at the University of Turku, said the procedure is lawful and acceptable.

“When the matter does not involve drunk driving, there is discretion over whether the driving ban must take effect immediately,” Hyttinen said.

According to Hyttinen, similar discretion may apply to speeding by professional refrigerated transport operators or when speeding occurs in a sparsely populated area. A driver who commits a speeding offence while travelling in Lapland, far from home, would need to be able to return home, he said.

Police determine the total length of a driving ban, while its duration depends on the punishment imposed by the district court.

Endangering traffic safety can be handled through a fine procedure, in which police issue a fine and impose a temporary driving ban. The final ban is imposed once the fine demand has become legally binding.

Aggravated endangerment of traffic safety cannot be handled through a fine procedure under Finnish law. Police can nevertheless impose a temporary driving ban in such cases, and it remains in force until the court has issued its judgment.

The driving bans imposed by Finnish police are valid in Finland.