Kingaroy dad behind bars for refusing to stay off roads

With seven pages of traffic history under his belt, a magistrate was left with no choice but to lock up a Kingaroy father.

SOCIAL MEDIA IMAGE DISCUSS USE WITH YOUR EDITOR - With seven pages of traffic history under his belt, a magistrate was left with no choice but to lock up Leim Strickland. Photo/Facebook.

A disqualified driving charge was the straw that broke the camel's back for Leim Strickland, whose seven page driving history left a magistrate with no choice but to lock him up for six months.

Standing before Kingaroy Magistrates Court, Strickland, 26, pleaded guilty to three charges including driving while uninsured, driving without a licence, and driving an unregistered vehicle.

On January 11, 2021, Strickland was intercepted while driving along Haly Street in Kingaroy, police prosecutor Barry Stevens told the court.

"He said he was trying to get his car up and running, hoping to get a work licence to help him get a job," sergeant Stevens said.

"The registration has been cancelled since 2019."

At the time of the offence Strickland was on a three month suspended jail sentence for disqualified driving, which dates back to 2020.

The defendant was represented by Mandy Reid from Athena Law.

Ms Reid said her client has been working hard to get his life back on track, attending a psychologist and recently securing full time employment.

"He's moving forward with his life in the endeavour to see his children, which he has not seen for over a year now, and get his life back on track."

Addressing the defendant, Magistrate Andrew Sinclair said for a 26-year-old Strickland's offending in relation to traffic matters is "extensive" and consists of a wide range of offences including, speeding, drink driving, not wearing a helmet, not displaying P-plates etc.

"You were before today disqualified from driving until the 28th of June 2025," Magistrate Sinclair said.

"You shouldn't own a car, there's no purpose in you owning a car. You can't drive for four years.

"Despite that disqualification, and being on a suspended prison sentence, you decided it was okay for you to do what everybody else on the road is not allowed to do and just drive.

"It's a serious offence where you flagrantly disregarded the requirements to have a registered vehicle on the road and that you can only drive if you're licensed to drive."

Magistrate Sinclair sentenced Strickland to three months in prison and activated his pre-existing suspended sentence, which is to be served cumulatively.

He will be entitled to parole on May 22, after serving one third of the six month jail term.

For driving unregistered and uninsured he was convicted and not further punished.

A conviction was recorded for each offence.

Originally published as Kingaroy dad behind bars for refusing to stay off roads