Teen banned and fined for dangerous driving

Tuesday 22 December 2020

A 17-year-old boy has been banned from driving for two years, and ordered to carry out 120 hours of community service, after he drove away while a police officer was holding his passenger door, before doing 70mph on the Avenue, whilst also uninsured and on probation. He only held a provisional licence at the time.

The teen – who cannot be named because of his age – was also given a 12-month probation order and fined £400.

Those offences were in breach of a probation order imposed earlier this year by the Youth Court after the teen broke into three different houses and was found with a small amount of cannabis.

At the time of the incident, he had completed 95 of the 180 hours of community service ordered by the Youth Court.

Pictured: The teen drove away whilst a police officer was holding his passenger door.

The Royal Court heard that at around 02:30 on 6 September 2020, police officers parked behind a car on Green Street and turned on their blue lights to signal they wanted to speak to the driver.

One of the officers approached the vehicle and heard the engine start so he opened the front passenger door and shouted “Police stop.” The teen started driving away, pulling the officer in its direction.

Despite the officer screaming for the vehicle to stop, the teen continued driving away and the officer lost hold of the door handle.

He then drove through the tunnel onto the Albert Pier, before turning around and exiting Albert Pier on the wrong side of the road. 

Next he went through the roundabout and turned onto Victoria Avenue, weaving from lane to lane to prevent the police from driving alongside him. Officers noted they were driving at 60mph through the 30mph zone to keep up with the car, and reached 70mph on the Avenue.

Near St. Aubin, the teen overtook a vehicle that was waiting at temporary traffic lights before driving through the 20mph limit “faster than was safe” as reported by the officers.  

The officers stopped the pursuit near Mont Sohier due to the possible danger to other road users. 

Pictured: Officers noted they were driving at 60mph through the 30mph zone to keep up with the car, and reached 70mph on the Avenue. 

Crown Advocate Lauren Hallam described the incident as “a prolonged period of dangerous driving”, noting it had taken place while the teenager was not insured and under a provisional licence.  

The vehicle was found abandoned later that day and the teen arrested a few hours later.

He confirmed he was on a provisional licence and had owned the vehicle for about three weeks. He said that when he saw the police he panicked and drove off because he wasn’t insured. 

Crown Advocate Hallam recommended 120 hours of community service, to add to the 85 hours remaining from the previous order. She also recommended a 12-month probation order, a two-year driving ban and a £400 fine.

She explained that while normally the Court would order for the vehicle to be destroyed, it was not necessary as the vehicle had already been scrapped by DVS. 

Pictured: Advocate Julia-Anne Dix was representing the teen.

His lawyer, Advocate Julia-Anne Dix, told Court the teen had accepted full responsibility for his actions from the very beginning.

She described her client’s decision to drive away as “very stupid and foolish”, noting the passengers were “egging him on and encouraging him” to do so.

She said he was very thankful his actions didn’t lead to any injuries and had expressed “genuine remorse” in a letter to the court. 

The lawyer explained the young man had a very supportive family, who had been “extremely disappointed” by his appearance before the Youth Court earlier this year and his dangerous driving offences.  

She urged the Court to read the character reference provided by her client’s employer, who described him as hardworking, and was planning to offer him an apprenticeship.

Advocate Dix noted the young man had been performing well in his community service and that he hadn’t been able to complete his hours due to the pandemic, not through his own fault.

She said he needed to learn how to deal with his impulsive thoughts and urged the Court to follow the recommendation of the Probation Service, who said work could be done to avoid him being before court again.

“A further period of community service and probation would be able to support and guide him to move away from his actions that have brought him before the court today,” she added.

Pictured: The Bailiff warned the teen he would not be given another chance.

The Bailiff Timothy Le Cocq, who was sitting with Jurats Collette Crill and Jane Ronge, agreed with the sentence suggested by the Crown Advocate, describing the teen’s driving as “very dangerous”.

He noted the teen had not only put the Officer’s life in danger, but also endangered others.

While he said the Court could have sent the teen to youth detention, the Bailiff said they had decided to offer him “one further opportunity to put his life on track and avoid prison."

He then addressed the teen directly, warning him he would have been taken to prison had the Officer been injured as it could have happened very easily “by way of his stupidity."

The Bailiff also warned the teen he would not be offered another chance, noting he was showing worrying signs of disregard for the law and the safety of others. 

“You are at a crossroads and you have choices to make, adult choices,” the Bailiff said. “You can have a worthwile and satisfying life with the help of those around you,” he added. “We do not expect to see you here again or indeed before the Youth Court. Do not let your family down!”