On 26th February 1999 Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson was caught by police driving his BMW on the hard shoulder of the M602 near Manchester. Wrong but not particularly newsworthy - well not particularly newsworthy until the matter went to court in October and Sir Alex gave his defence! He said that he was rushing to get to a toilet!
Bury Magistrates Court was told that he was suffering from acute gastroenteritis and severe diarrhoea and needed the toilet so drove on the hard shoulder to get past a traffic jam. He had been too embarrassed to explain to the police the reason at the time so explaining to the Court, and the world, what the two options were on that day, must have been a tad difficult.
He was let off! Sir Alex Ferguson, the manager of Manchester United, was yesterday found not guilty of illegally driving on a motorway hard shoulder after magistrates heard he had been suffering from severe diarrhoea and was trying to get to a toilet. Sir Alex was stopped by police on the M602, in Eccles, Greater Manchester, last February at the height of Manchester United's campaign which saw them win the treble of Premiership, FA Cup and European Cup. Sir Alex, 57, told Bury magistrates that he had been experiencing stomach cramps the night before being stopped by police and was continually visiting the toilet. He went to Mike Stone, the club doctor to get some Imodium tablets before he left the club. Sir Alex said: `Around lunchtime I was feeling much better. I thought the Imodium had worked and there was not a problem after that.' However, Sir Alex said that his stomach problems returned as he drove home. He told magistrates: `When I got on the M602 I started to feel the cramps again. When I got into the snarl-up of traffic I took another tablet. I stayed there for about four or five minutes. I then decided to get back to Old Trafford.' Nicholas Freeman, defending, said: `Putting it bluntly, did you need to go to the toilet?' Sir Alex replied: `That was very much the case. I had to go somewhere quickly.' The court heard that to avoid queuing along the M602 and in an attempt to get onto the M62 to return to Old Trafford to use the toilet, Sir Alex travelled on the hard shoulder. Sir Alex was cautioned by police but did not say anything about his desperate desire to get to a toilet at the time because of the embarrassment and publicity it might cause.
Mr Freeman told the court that his client had two options while stuck in the traffic jam. `One is the unthinkable and one is to take evasive action,' he said. Mr Freeman added that Sir Alex could have pleaded guilty to avoid any publicity. `It's not easy for someone in his position to come into court and, with respect, explain his toilet difficulties on that day.' Agreeing with the defence, chairman of the bench Leslie Berkeley said that Sir Alex was indeed caught in an emergency situation and was not guilty of any offence. The court was not told whether or not Sir Alex was allowed to continue after his caution!!!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dWfC5ESm-_o
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=50buxzlwpy4
Sir Alex Ferguson was once arrested and jailed following a drunken fight during his playing days. The legendary Manchester United manager was at St Johnstone at the time and was struggling to break into the first team. Ferguson was fined £3 for the incident after appearing in court. By his own admission, Ferguson went off the rails in the early 1960s as a result of his career faltering. His behavior sparked a rift with his dad, and the pair didn't speak for two years as a result.
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