Drug driver who sped from police spared jail

ADRIVER who sped away from police at speeds of up to 70mph on narrow roads was spared jail.

James McGray Mann said he panicked when he realised a police vehicle was signalling for him to stop, as he knew the vehicle had no MOT certificate and he had been taking illegal drugs.

The 21-year-old, of Valley, admitted charges of dangerous driving, driving with a proportion of a controlled drug above the specified limit, and failing to stop when signalled to do so by a police officer.

Mann was handed a 10-month prison sentence which was suspended for 18 months.

Judge Timothy Petts, at Caernarfon Crown Court, said it was a matter of luck that no car, pedestrian or tractor was in Mann’s way.

“You could have killed someone or you could have killed yourself,” he said.

By suspending the prison term, the judge said Mann was being given a chance to “sort his life out”.

“You can’t expect too many chances in future,” he added.

Andrew McInnes, prosecuting, said officers saw the 13-year-old Ford Fiesta leaving the A5 at Gaerwen onto the B4419 towards Llangaffo on September 13 last year.

Driving away, the vehicle emitted a cloud of black smoke and the officers were concerned about the state of the vehicle, said Mr McInnes.

“The officers caught up with the vehicle and signalled it to stop,” he said. “It did not and a pursuit ensued.

“The Fiesta was driven at 60mph on an unclassified road where 40mph would have been considered fast.”

Mann later accelerated to 70mph past houses which were close to the road. Approaching a right-hand bend, Mann lost control and drove down a farm track into a yard where people were working with animals.

Realising it was a dead end, Mann did a handbrake turn before switching off the engine. He was arrested and gave a positive swipe test for cocaine and cannabis.

Richard Edwards, defending, said: “He recognises the stupidity of his actions. He now realises he should have stopped but panicked because he knew the vehicle did not have an MOT certificate and he had been smoking cannabis.”

Mr Edwards said Mann had been abusing controlled drugs since he was 15 and this was affecting his work prospects and his health. He urged the court to follow the recommendations of the pre-sentence report and suspend any jail term.

In addition to the suspended jail term, Mann must do 200 hours of unpaid work and attend rehabilitation days and drug treatment. He was disqualified from driving for 18 months and retake his driving test.