Teen driver jailed after high speed police pursuit
SuppliedA teenage driver who put lives at risk during a police pursuit past children walking to school has been jailed.
Lewis Naisbitt, 19, reached speeds of 100mph (161km/h) through London Road, Carlisle, more than three times the speed limit, and drove through red lights while pedestrians including children were on the pavements.
Carlisle Crown Court heard the teenager, of Sunningdale Road, Middlesbrough, was a disqualified driver and had no recollection of the incident due to previous consumption of pregabalin and cannabis.
He came to police attention at about 07:00 BST on 9 September on the M6 coming into the city, with reports he had rammed a patrol vehicle in Scotland and had false number plates.
At a hearing on Friday, Naisbitt admitted dangerous driving, disqualified driving, failing to take a preliminary drug test, having no insurance and fraudulently using a registration mark.
Judge Nicholas Barker jailed him for 14 months and imposed a two-year driving ban, to be served upon release. He must also complete a mandatory retest before his licence is returned.
Naisbitt was told it "chills the veins, the thought that he has memory loss because of the inducement of drugs".
'Incredibly nasty incident'
Prosecutor Matthew Hopkins said the defendant had progressively increased his speed as police followed in pursuit.
"Dashcam footage shows some schoolchildren standing by the side of the road, on the pavement, while the defendant drives past at [100mph] speed," he said.
The court heard he narrowly avoided crashing with another vehicle as he left Carlisle for the M6 at about 115mph (185km/h).
As police brought traffic to a standstill in a bid to halt Naisbitt, he undertook vehicles in the hard shoulder and continued to drive despite tyres being burst by a stinger as he left the motorway at junction 41 near Penrith.
Hopkins said he then crashed into the front of a stationary HGV and forced the driver of a second lorry to take evasive action.
Defence barrister Scarlett Wilson said Naisbitt had asked her to apologise to the court on his behalf.
"The incident was incredibly nasty," she said.
"He is somewhat embarrassed to think about it and think about what could have happened and the injury that could have been caused by his actions. It rightly troubles him."
Judge Barker, who heard of Naisbitt's challenging upbringing, called him "a danger to life".
"Your determination to avoid the police was absolute and disregarded, completely, everyone else's safety. I find it hard to imagine a more dangerous piece of driving than you displayed.
"In my judgement this driving was so serious, it put so many individuals at risk of serious injury or even death that it would be an affront to justice if this was not an immediate sentence."