Teen’s decision to take paddock skidding to the city proves costly
A decision to take some farmland fun to the city streets has landed one teenager in trouble with both the law and his mother.
Callum Jensen-attenborough pleaded guilty in the Palmerston North District Court yesterday to driving with sustained loss of traction.
The 19-year-old was driving a Ford along Valor Drive, Palmerston North, at 6pm on July 2.
Valor Drive is in an area of the city boy racers often congregate to do burnouts.
Jensen-attenborough performed burnouts, before pulling into a driveway, where he and another driver stayed for 30 minutes.
He ended up being pulled over after turning onto El Prado Drive, which has a speed limit of 50kmh, and being clocked doing 92kmh.
Police found the car had not been warranted since 2015 and had a registration exemption because it was not roadworthy.
Defence lawyer Jacinda Younger said Jensenattenborough usually used the car to do skids in a paddock.
‘‘It was only used on the farm, but the paddocks got too wet, so he and his friends have unwisely decided to move that sport on to a public road.
‘‘His mum is pretty upset with him.’’
Jensen-attenborough was looking at either getting a job or doing a pre-apprenticeship course at UCOL. ‘‘Maybe a mechanics course. He likes cars, obviously,’’ Younger said.
Sentencing him to community work could do more harm than good, she said.
Judge David Smith said a harsher sentence than usual was needed because he had accrued fines for driving without a warrant of fitness and breaching his learner licence.
Jensen-attenborough was fined $500 and disqualified from driving for six months.