A man who admitted to police that he was so high after they caught him drug driving that he didn’t even remember getting in the car has been sentenced by South Tyneside magistrates.
The court heard that the 30-year-old was caught on camera driving at over 50mph in a residential area, careering over speed bumps while police pursued, and only came to a halt when he jammed his car between railings and a lamppost.
District Judge Kathryn Meek described his driving as “completely out of control” on watching the footage.
Lesley Burgess, prosecuting, said: “Police state he was driving at up to 50mph in a 30mph area.
“Officers describe it as being a residential area and on two occasions his car mounts the footpath.
“He then collided with railings and was arrested for dangerous driving. A roadside swab was positive for cocaine.
“A swab at the police station showed he was under the limit for cocaine, but a blood sample showed he was over for cannabis.
“He was also found to not have insurance or a driving licence, and checks found a small bag of white powder in the car. It was amphetamine.”
The man was found to have 2.2mcg THC – the psychoactive compound in cannabis – per litre of blood. The legal drug driving limit is 2mcg.
Mitigating, David Wright told the court that the pursuit was short and there were no other drivers or pedestrians in the vicinity.
“It’s less than 60 seconds before he comes to a stop. I don’t think we see a single person or a car during the clip.
“If the custody threshold is crossed you do have the option of imposing a suspended sentence of up to 12 months.
“The Probation report does contain a lot of positive information. He has expressed to me that he does want help with his drugs’ use.”
The man pleaded guilty to drug driving, dangerous driving, driving without a licence or insurance, and failing to stop for police at an earlier hearing.
Judge Meek jailed him for 40 weeks for the offence of dangerous driving and 12 weeks for drug driving, and four weeks for possession of amphetamine – a class A drug – all to be served concurrently.
The man was also banned from the roads for 40 months as he had a previous motoring conviction for drink driving from 2013, putting him within the threshold of a second recent offence. He must also pay a £187 victim surcharge and will need to take an extended driving test before getting behind the wheel again.
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