Daniel Allen Poyner jailed for wild pursuit after striking police officer with car

A driver struck a police officer with a stolen car before a 50-minute pursuit began, running red lights and driving on the wrong side of the road. Watch the crazy footage.

A judge said it was sheer good fortune a father-of-three did not kill or injure someone in a wild pursuit where he ran red lights and drove on the wrong side of the road.

PolAir captured Daniel Allen Poyner hitting a police officer with a stolen car before his “50 minutes of madness” on the roads.

During sentencing, the District Court heard police were conducting observations of a stolen car on September 23, 2021.

Two unmarked police vehicles travelled to a unit complex in Salisbury East and parked in order to block the car from leaving.

A police officer removed Poyner’s passenger and yelled for him to get out of the car.

Daniel Poyner was jailed for the wild police pursuit. Photo: Courts SA

The court heard Poyner panicked and accelerated the car towards a small gap between a fence and one of the police vehicles where another police officer was standing.

As Poyner accelerated, the officer attempted to run behind the fence and out of the path but was struck by the car.

“He was then thrown approximately 2m towards the road, landing on his back,” Judge Jane Schammer said.

“The vehicle you were driving also collided with the fence and the police vehicle, which had the officer’s police dog inside it.”

Poyner drove off and a pursuit ensued.

“You travelled at high speeds, weaving in and out of heavy traffic, at times on the wrong side of the road, running red lights and cutting corners,” Judge Schammer said.

“You continued to drive the vehicle even when its tyres were successfully road spiked.”

Eventually Poyner abandoned the car at the front of the Findon Shopping Centre and attempted to escape by foot before he was found hiding behind a loading dock and a large rubbish bin.

Poyner, 36, of Brahma Lodge, pleaded guilty to recklessly causing harm and driving dangerously to escape police pursuit.

Judge Schammer said it was also good fortune that Poyner managed not to injure or kill anyone in his “50 minutes of madness”.

“It was only by sheer good fortune that Officer Roberts was not struck by a passing vehicle when he was thrown backwards onto the road,” she said.

In his victim impact statement, Officer Roberts described the physical injuries he sustained as some of the worst he had ever suffered and had severe pain for days, struggling to move or sleep.

“He has replayed the incident over in his head whilst in bed at night and fears the sound of the car revving and those flashbacks will stay with him forever,” Judge Schammer said.

The court heard the incident also had a significant impact on the officer’s wife, as it occurred when they were planning their wedding.

“She struggled to sleep and did not want her fiance to return to work, fearing that she may lose him by him simply doing his job,” Judge Schammer said.

The court heard Poyner accepted full responsibility for his actions and had written a letter of apology to Brevet Sergeant Roberts.

The court heard Poyner had been on a “meth binge” for about three days at the time of the offending and had not slept.

Judge Schammer said police officers are entitled to be protected and Poyner posed a significant risk to the community during his offending.

Taking into account the time Poyner had spent in custody, Judge Schammer sentenced him to one year and eight months in jail, with a non-parole period of two months.

Poyner was also disqualified from driving for six years.