IN COURT: 19yo fails to appear twice and drives unlicensed

A 19-year-old meat worker has racked up a total of four offences throughout 2020 for driving unlawfully and failing to appear. DETAILS:

A 19-year-old meat worker has racked up a total of four offences throughout 2020 for driving unlawfully and failing to appear. Picture: Facebook

A Gympie teenager has been fined $800 in Gympie Magistrates Court for driving while disqualified and while his licence was suspended, and then failing twice to front the court.

Cheyne Andrew Tompkins, 19, was busted driving on the Southside at 1am on July 4, the court heard.

His licence had been disqualified due to the allocation of demerit points.

Solicitor Nightingale said Tompkins drove because he went to pick up his friend who had broken down.

“He made this foolish decision to go and pick up his friend to do a good deed,” Ms Nightingale said.

Tompkins then failed to appear in court on October 15.

Ms Nightingale said this was a mistake as Tompkins did not understand how court proceedings worked.

“He said he’d never been to court before and thought that court was at 9am and when he was still there at 10am, rather than asking some questions, he thought he’d been forgotten about so left,” she said.

“In relation to the failed to appear on November 5, he simply chose not to go.”

“In relation to the driving while suspended, he was suspended due to an outstanding speeding fine,” she said.

“He said he made the stupid decision to drive with his friend to the gym, even though his friend did have a driver’s licence, he said he decided to drive because it was his car so he thought he should drive.”

Convictions were not recorded and his licence was disqualified for six months.

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