Mitchell Bakewell, 19, was high on ice when he led police on a high speed chase while out on a suspended sentence

A TEENAGER who was handed a suspended sentence over a meth-fuelled high speed car chase was arrested a week later after a meth-fuelled high speed car chase

A TEENAGER who threw a lit firecracker at a police officer during a meth-fuelled, high-speed, pursuit has been jailed.

Mitchell Bakewell, 19, pleaded guilty last week to driving unregistered, unlicensed, disqualified, and with false number plates in an unroadworthy car, possessing two ice pipes, failing to stop, assaulting police and shooting a firework at a police car.

Bakewell’s own lawyer, Matt Hubber, told Judge John Neill his client’s offending was “disgraceful”.

The court heard Bakewell had a 15-year-old female passenger in the Honda when he led police on chase at up to 160km/h on September 25, at one point driving the wrong way down Tiger Brennan Dr, forcing an oncoming car to swerve out of his way.

Police officers had to take evasive action in fear for their safety when Bakewell threw a lit firework at their car.

The chase came to a halt when Bakewell tried to drive up a steep embankment onto an overpass, which his car couldn’t make it up.

Bakewell got only 10 metres after trying to run from police, but punched a constable in the face.

He told police on the scene he had smoked ice before the pursuit.

He also pleaded guilty to attempting to escape from custody in the basement of Darwin Local Court, where, at a previous court appearance, he had ran from guards when being led down to the basement cells and tried to open the car park roller door that leads to the outside world.

Mr Hubber said Bakewell had a history of similar offending and that “things quickly went off the rails” after he was released from his last stint in jail.

“Your honour, it’s a disgrace,” he said.

Mr Neill said Bakewell “made it through a week” as a free man before getting into another ice-fuelled police pursuit.

He said a request for Bakewell to be handed a suspended sentence and sent to rehabilitation would be “another chance to do the same thing”.

“Your client’s behaviour in these matters is deeply worrying,” he said.

Mr Neill sentenced Bakewell to 15 months in jail with a non-parole period of 14 months.

He also fined him $1600 plus $600 in court levies, and disqualified him from getting behind the wheel again for five years.