Xmas Day fine . . . for stopping in bus lane to help homeless
A FORMER soldier who stopped in an empty bus lane to give a freezing homeless man clothes and food on Christmas Day has been fined £70 by the council.
Lee Williamson, 43, said he saw the rough sleeper outside Leicester railway station while driving his daughter to work.
The carpenter and part-time charity worker said there were no buses or trains running on Christmas Day and barely any cars in the deserted city centre, so he pulled over to the side of the road.
He handed some hats, gloves, scarves, tinned food and biscuits to the grateful homeless man.
But just over a week later a penalty charge of £70 issued by Leicester council came through Mr Williamson’s letterbox. The father of three emailed the authority to explain his charitable gesture but was left stunned when it said it would not overturn the fine.
Mr Williamson, who served with the Royal Anglian Regiment, said he felt like he was being ‘punished for doing something good’. He has refused to pay the fine and said he would be happy to contest the matter in court.
Mr Williamson, of Evington, Leicester, said: ‘I really felt for the man as it was Christmas Day and he looked freezing. There was literally no traffic and there were no buses on Christmas Day so I thought it would be perfectly safe to pull over.’
Mr Williamson had the supplies in his car because he works with the charity, Once, We Were Soldiers, which helps homeless veterans. He added: ‘I thought once I explained to the council why I had pulled over they would just cancel the ticket. I’m pretty disgusted... It’s not like I’ve parked up to go to the shops in rush hour.’
In response to Mr Williamson’s letter, the council said: ‘While we applaud your intentions – the CCTV was specifically introduced to prevent drivers stopping briefly at this point on London Road primarily because it is not safe.’
Leicester mayor Peter Soulsby said yesterday CCTV was introduced in the area after the death of a cyclist in 2016.