Ballina man Joel Peter Chisholm pleads guilty to knowingly getting into stolen car following Ballina police pursuit
A Ballina man who made a “silly choice” to hop into a stolen car to get food found himself in a world of trouble both in and out of court.
Police & Courts
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A man hopped into a stolen car for a food run which turned into a terrifying police pursuit.
South Ballina man Joel Peter Chisholm, 39, pleaded guilty at Ballina Local Court to knowingly getting into the stolen Mitsubishi Triton.
The four-wheel drive was snatched by Dylan Steven Willson while the driver checked a crab pot in Ballina.
Willson pleaded guilty to stealing the car, driving during a disqualification period, engaging in a police pursuit and dangerous driving. He also pleaded guilty to drug possession.
Stobart pleaded guilty to being carried in a car without the consent of the owner, as well as supplying a prohibited drug.
The court was told Chisholm had been taking drugs with Willson and Stobart at a caravan the night before the offending.
They were walking along the street when Willson spotted car keys in the unlocked car about 6am on February 2
Willson stole the car, sped off and returned to pick up Chisholm and Stobart, almost hitting the owner of the Triton in the process.
Police ended up in pursuit of the 4WD with Willson behind the wheel, driving on the wrong side of the road, speeding, narrowly avoiding crashes and forcing other motorists to take “evasive action”.
The car ended up crashing into an embankment near Pimlico, south of Ballina.
Defence Lawyer Leyla Roberts told the court “the (police) facts read like a horror story”.
“The night before the offence, one of the co-accused stayed at Chisholm’s caravan site and decided they needed to get food in the morning,” she said.
“It was a while ago and was quite hot, they were tired and had taken some drugs.”
Ms Roberts said Chisholm was aware the car was stolen and hopping in was an “impulsive decision”.
“He was terrified they were going to crash, he was yelling ‘stop’ to Willson and put a seatbelt on the co-accused,” she said.
The court heard on April 21 that Chisholm had not offended for three years before he got in the car, he was remorseful and did not know Willson well.
Ms Roberts said he had experienced significant abuse and neglect in younger years.
“He suffers from depression and PTSD,” she said.
Chisholm told the court: “I’m sorry for my actions, I made a silly choice.”
Magistrate Karen Stafford accepted Chisholm did not know Willson well.
“You got in the car because you thought you were getting food … you did what you could to make sure the co-accused had a seatbelt on,” she said.
“You have a long record including intensive corrections orders in the past.”
Chisholm was sentenced to a 12-month community corrections order and cannot associate with the co-offenders.
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