Stewart John Callum didn’t take kindly to copping the finger from other driver
A man carrying an overloaded and defective trailer load of soil crashed into another driver in what was described as a “road rage” incident. Here’s what happened following the crash.
Police & Courts
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A 48-year-old man has been placed on probation after pleading guilty to charges arising from a road rage incident in Toowoomba.
Stewart John Callum was towing a trailer overloaded with soil when he pulled up in front of another vehicle at the intersection of South and Wests Sts, Toowoomba, about 9am, November 16, last year.
As both cars moved forward the car behind him passed Callum’s who beeped his horn, receiving “the finger” from the other driver, Toowoomba Magistrates Court heard.
An agitated Callum then sped up to pass the other vehicle but in the process his trailer jack knifed and the vehicles collided in the middle of South St, police prosecutor Chris Willson told the court.
The collision dislodged Callum’s rear tyre and cracked the car’s axle, he said.
Senior Constable Willson said witnesses later told police the incident stemmed from a road rage type matter.
A police inspection of Callum’s trailer found it to be rusted through with bald tyres and the 48-year-old told police his car’s brakes needed replacing.
Callum also tested positive for cannabis though police accepted he had a script for medical cannabis he still couldn’t drive with that in his system, the court heard.
Callum pleaded guilty to driving without due care and attention, driving a defective vehicle and carrying a load that was unstable and unsafe, drug driving and contravening a police direction.
His solicitor Nathan Bouchier, of Bouchier Khan Lawyers, told the court the loss of licence would impact on his client who did gardening work for which he needed to drive.
His client used medical cannabis for pain relief and he intended to eventually obtain a disability pension.
His client lived 30km outside of Toowoomba but he could report to probation officers by phone while he was without a driver’s licence, Mr Bouchier submitted.
Describing his behaviour that day as “outrageous”, Magistrate Kay Phillipson placed Callum on 12 months probation and disqualified him from driving for three months.
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