Judge said Hartlepool drug driver could have killed someone

Callum McKie was told he was fortunate not to have killed or seriously injured a pedestrian who was forced to leap out of the way of his speeding Ford Mondeo.

The 27-year-old, who has never passed a driving test, was eventually arrested after he jumped from the car and attempted to flee police on foot.

Teesside Crown Court heard how McKie had just bought the car before he was spotted driving around Hartlepool on January 13 this year.

Cainan Lonsdale, prosecuting, played police footage of the high-speed police pursuit to the judge as he described the dangerous manoeuvres carried out by McKie.

He said: “The defendant very narrowly avoided a collision with parked vehicles as he momentarily loses control of the vehicle.

“There is then almost another collision which is narrowly avoided at two junctions.

“A pedestrian getting into another vehicle had to tuck himself behind a car door to avoid being hit.”

Mr Lonsdale said the defendant was already wanted for other matters at the time of his arrest and had previous convictions for motoring offences including drug driving and taking a vehicle without the owner’s consent.

Callum McKie (Image: Cleveland Police)

McKie, of Northumberland Walk, Hartlepool, pleaded guilty to dangerous driving, driving under the influence of cannabis, driving without a licence and driving without insurance.

Martin Scarborough, mitigating, said the father-of one was now working with the probation service to address his offending.

He added: “He accepts that he shouldn’t have been driving on that night and did have the good sense to plead guilty at the earliest opportunity.

Judge Jonathan Carroll sentenced the dangerous driver to 14 months in custody after the entire chase was captured on a police video recording as he told him he could have killed someone.

“It is a truly appalling piece of dangerous driving,” he said. “It was a winter’s night; it was dark; the whole of the offending took place in residential areas almost entirely subject to 30mph speed limits apart from those that were 20mph.

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“The highest speed that was recorded was 87mph. I saw your car bouncing in a dangerous way at speed over multiple speed humps in the road.

“I saw at least one other vehicle forced to take evasive action; I saw a pedestrian who was missed by inches as you were driving at a very considerable speed.

“Had you hit the car door that the man was hiding behind, you would have caused him extremely serious injury. Being hit by a closing door at speeds in excess of 70mph could have killed him.”

McKie was also banned from driving for four years once he is released from prison.