Janoušek lied, but so did the judge

In toughening the prison sentence yesterday against Roman Janoušek for grievous bodily harm from three years to 4.5 years, the lead judge on the Prague Superior Court panel indicated that she didn't believe Janoušek's version of events. The judge referred to police wiretaps, which basically proved that Janoušek was lying about not seeing the woman he hit. What sets this apart from other similar cases, the judge said, is that Janoušek used his car as a weapon against a petite woman who had no way to defend herself. This isn't entirely true. There are numerous cases every day when a Czech driver uses his or her car (usually his) to threaten, intimidate or scatter pedestrians who are crossing the street in a completely lawful fashion. Only a few pedestrians might get hit, but cars are still being used routinely as weapons as defined under the criminal code. It's true, though, that those in law enforcement rarely take notice.