Support for teen mistakenly fined by police

Lydia Forsyth had been to Rotorua only twice - once when she was a child and once in April. Photo / Supplied

The parents of an Auckland teen battling to prove she's been mistakenly made to pay a police ticket have been inundated with support since their case was reported in the Herald today.

Lydia Forsyth, 17, is refuting that she was behind the wheel of a car when a $130 fine was handed out in Rotorua in January, saying she was home with her mum Tammy Taylor in Auckland at the time.

The first she knew of the $130 infringement notice, handed out for the overseer of a learner driver not being seated correctly, was when she received a letter warning about unpaid fines.

Nearly six months after the fine was issued, she and her parents, Glenn Forsyth and Tammy Taylor, are still fighting, questioning how a police officer could seemingly issue an infringement notice with no proof of identity. "I was at home in Auckland with my mum," said Lydia.

"I came back from Japan ... and stayed for the week in Auckland to see friends and be with mum.

"I was told I was seen driving in Rotorua ... it's not possible it was me when I was in Auckland."

Lydia, who is a Year 13 boarding student at St Peter's School in Cambridge, was also sent a court summons to appear in front of a registrar at the Papakura District Court on Monday to explain her unpaid fines.

Police have declined to comment on the matter.

The Ministry of Justice has put the process on hold until a fine dispute application has been received and Ms Taylor and Lydia's father said they were unsure whether Lydia was still required to appear before the court.

Mr Forsyth said that if he had to attend the scheduled court hearing, he would be demanding compensation for the time he had to take off work.

"I've had all of my mates and other people texting me today, saying what the hell is going on?" he said today.

He was still trying to get to the bottom of the case and find out who it was that the police ticketed.

Lydia had never known or been inside a car with the registration of the vehicle involved and had been to Rotorua only twice - once when she was a child and once in April.

"We want to find out who the person is, how they've done it, and why they've done it."

Ms Taylor said she had also received plenty of support from people today.

"As a hairdresser I've been absolutely flabbergasted at how many people who have been through this," she said.

Readers have also approached the Herald with similar stories - one who was mistakenly fined for driving an unregistered vehicle and driving while disqualified, when he hadn't lost his licence, and another who had 20 demerit points put against his licence for a speeding ticket given to his partner.

Ms Taylor said she was concerned someone was fraudulently using her daughter's identity and Mr Forsyth has spent more than the fine's value placing newspaper advertisements warning of the potential fraud.

He said the case highlighted several flaws in police procedure. "The fine is irrelevant. I want this explained to us and either this person prosecuted for using a false ID or a change in the way officers give tickets."

University of Auckland law professor Dr Bill Hodge said the onus was on police to prove Lydia committed the offence.

"Even though it's a traffic fine it's still a criminal matter and the burden is on the prosecutor, in this case the police, to prove the offence was committed by this individual.

"There could be a serious crime committed here which is providing false information to the police, far more serious than any traffic fine."