A magistrate surprised the court when he drew attention to a six-month suspended sentence hanging over the head of a former Westbury man who pleaded guilty to a raft of driving charges.
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Edward Richards, 40, pleaded guilty to two counts of disqualified driving, failing to comply with the duties of a driver involved in a crash, disobeying a red light, driving without due care and attention and possessing a dangerous article in a public place.
Richards also pleaded guilty to several counts of breaching bail and breaching family violence orders.
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Magistrate Duncan Fairley alerted prosecution and defence counsel to a six-month suspended sentence handed down to Richards in July, 2017 that would need to be taken into account in sentencing.
The sentence came after Richards pleaded guilty to burglary and stealing a $35,000 Subaru Outback from Marshall Auto Repairs at Legana.
Then Justice Shan Tennent suspended the sentence for three years on the condition that he commit no crimes punishable by imprisonment for three years.
Some of the crimes to which Richards pleaded guilty occurred before the end of the three-year period of suspension.
Mr Fairley ordered that an oral application by police to activate the suspended sentence be served on the defendant's counsel before sentencing on January 13 2022.
The court heard that Richards had been in custody since November 24 2021.
Police prosecutor Natalie Clark said Richards was disqualified driver when caught driving in Westbury on May 10, 2020. He had been disqualified from driving from September 2018 to September 2020.
A week later he was intercepted at Hagley doing 126km/h in a 100km/h zone and when breath tested he exceeded 0.05.
In June police attended a multi-vehicle crash at the corner of David Street and Elphin Road where Richards had failed to stop.
A driver was waiting to turn into Elphin Road when Richards accelerated sharply and crashed into the rear of his car causing it to jolt forward.
"The defendant reversed away and crashed into the front of a vehicle driven by a female complainant with her infant son in the car," Ms Clark said.
"The defendant then drove off and travelled through a red traffic light."
The female driver suffered whiplash and headache.
Police attended an address in Ravenswood shortly after and the car drove off and evaded police.
Police later located a vehicle in Newstead that was stuck on an embankment in which Richards and a female were asleep in the vehicle heavily under the influence of alcohol. People seized a Stanley knife from him.
He was taken to the Launceston Police station but became belligerent and swore at officers and was charged with using abusive language.
Defence counsel Stephen Cronin told Mr Fairley that he had been instructed to make a bail application.
"Well he's under sentence on a number of serious matters so I don't see a great deal of likelihood that I would grant bail," Mr Fairley said.
He adjourned sentencing until January 13 at 3.30pm.
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Nick Clark
I am the Supreme and Magistrates Court reporter for the Examiner for the past 18 months. My journalism career has clicked over 30 years and encompasses four different spells at Tasmanian newspapers.
I am the Supreme and Magistrates Court reporter for the Examiner for the past 18 months. My journalism career has clicked over 30 years and encompasses four different spells at Tasmanian newspapers.
