‘No excuse’ for reckless police evader’s actions, says Magistrate

A man has been jailed for series of driving offences, including a “terrible episode” of reckless driving on major roads in an unroadworthy car.

A YOUTH with a serious history of driving offences will spend seven months in prison after pleading guilty to a reckless attempt to evade police, which ended in a crash last year.

Brandon Carlisle Leahy, 19, of Mowbray, had previously pleaded guilty in the Launceston Magistrates Court to a long list of driving offences that occurred between June last year and this month.

Magistrate Simon Brown said Leahy was driving while disqualified with a passenger in the car when he saw police and panicked at Invermay in the early afternoon on June 10 last year.

He described what followed as a “terrible episode” of reckless driving on major roads in an unroadworthy car.

Magistrate Brown said the evade attempt was “persistent and sustained” with Leahy losing control of his car and colliding with a police car.

“The driving only ended when the car was stopped and, as it turned out, could not move,” Magistrate Brown said.

“The particulars of the charge of reckless [driving] are extremely serious matters.”

Magistrate Brown said Leahy’s excuse that he panicked was a “very common” one and there was “no excuse for driving the way you did over that sustained period”.

Leahy also pleaded guilty to several further charges of driving uninsured, unregistered and with illicit drugs in his system up until April 3, when he was taken into custody.

Magistrate Brown said Leahy’s record was poor for such a young driver and “must be met with stern punishment”.

Magistrate Brown activated a two-month suspended sentence Leahy was already subject to and sentenced him to a further five months to serve and four suspended for 18 months from his release.

He disqualified Leahy from driving for two years and nine months.