A runaway driver drove directly into the path of oncoming vehicles during a police pursuit. Steven Thorpe, aged 35, was instructed to stop by police on the A1 near Bawtry on the afternoon of November 11, last year.
After pulling to the side of the road he immediately sped away, swerving around the police vehicle and driving off at high speed, the force said. After driving on the wrong side of the road he then collided with a police car as he attempted to force his way through a narrow gap at a roundabout.
Officers later abandoned the pursuit for reasons of public safety but soon caught up with Thorpe at his home address. Thorpe, of Willow Avenue, Carlton in Lindrick, later admitted to dangerous driving, according to Nottinghamshire Police.
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He was also admitted to an unrelated assault, where he repeatedly punched a restaurant worker. Thorpe had been passing by the restaurant in Carlton in Lindrick on the evening of Thursday, June 2, when he asked his victim to help light his cigarette.
He then flew into a rage and began his violent assault. Police arrived on the scene moments later and arrested him.
Appearing at Nottingham Crown Court on Friday, June 2, Thorpe was jailed or a total of two years. He was also disqualified from driving for two-and-a-half years.
PC Jack Stout, of Nottinghamshire Police, said: “Thorpe has shown a consistent disregard for other people, and I am pleased he has now been held to account.
“His driving was reckless in the extreme and could very easily have led to deaths and serious injuries on the road. I sincerely hope he uses this time in prison to reassess the way he is living his life.”
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