At a hearing in Ipswich Crown Court on October 6, a man from Colchester was handed a suspended sentence after being convicted of dangerous driving.
Jamie Birch, of Foresight Road, was convicted for an incident that occurred on August 25, 2024. Birch was attempting to evade pursuing police officers, and drove a Vauxhall Combo van at speeds of up to 78mph on roads with a 30mph speed limit. The court was told that Birch had overtaken cars on the wrong side of the road, had failed to stop at red lights or complex junctions, and had turned his lights down while driving along country lanes.
He later threw drugs out of the car window and stopped in a layby, where police arrested him for both dangerous driving and production of a controlled substance.
Recorder Jeremy Benson, highlighting the potential consequences of dangerous driving, indicated that both offences crossed the custodial threshold. After hearing mitigating factors presented by defence lawyer Simon Connolly, he gave Birch a suspended custodial sentence of 11 months, and ordered him to pay £687 and complete 125 hours of unpaid work and 12 rehabilitation days. He also imposed a year-long driving disqualification.
Dangerous driving carries a maximum penalty of 2 years imprisonment and a minimum 12-month driving ban with an extended retest. Here at Auriga Advocates, Andrea, our CEO, was for many years a fatal road traffic specialist at the Crown Prosecution Service, and has a thorough knowledge of traffic offences and court procedures. If you are being investigated for a road traffic offence such as dangerous driving, solicitors’ advice and support is essential. Contact us now and we can discuss your options going forward.