Police Pursuit Charge Withdrawn: Aggravated Due Care and No Conviction for a P-Plater
A young provisional driver charged with dangerous driving to escape a police pursuit had that charge withdrawn, pleaded guilty to a single count of aggravated driving without due care, and was discharged without conviction on a good behaviour bond.
Our client was charged with failing to comply with a police direction to stop and with dangerous driving to escape a police pursuit under section 19AC of the Criminal Law Consolidation Act 1935 (SA). She was a P-plater with no criminal history. After negotiation, both charges were withdrawn and she pleaded guilty to one substituted count of driving without due care, as an aggravated offence. The Port Adelaide Magistrates Court recorded no conviction.
Outcome at a glance
- Dangerous driving to escape a police pursuit (section 19AC) withdrawn
- Failing to comply with a direction to stop withdrawn
- Guilty plea to one count of aggravated driving without due care under section 45 of the Road Traffic Act 1961 (SA)
- No conviction recorded: 10 month good behaviour bond in the sum of $500 under section 97 of the Sentencing Act 2017 (SA)
- Mandatory 6 month disqualification backdated to the date of the incident
- Court fees waived; levies and a modest prosecution costs order
Overview
Police alleged that our client did not stop when officers activated their lights and siren, drove at high speeds through several speed zones, and entered a major intersection against a red light while carrying passengers. They charged her with failing to comply with a direction to stop and with dangerous driving to escape a police pursuit.
She was young, had held her provisional licence for only a few months, and had no prior offending. Her breath alcohol reading was zero.
The challenge: the charges and what they carried
Section 40H(5) of the Road Traffic Act 1961 (SA) makes it an offence to contravene a direction to stop given under that section. The maximum penalty is $5,000.
Section 19AC was the serious charge. It applies to a person who, intending to escape pursuit by a police officer or to cause a police officer to engage in a pursuit, drives in a culpably negligent manner, recklessly, or at a speed or in a manner dangerous to any person. The maximum penalty for a basic offence is 3 years imprisonment, and on conviction the court must disqualify the driver for at least 2 years. That disqualification cannot be reduced.
The charge turned on intent. The prosecution had to prove that our client meant to escape the police, not only that she failed to stop and drove dangerously.
Our approach
1. Identify the element that drove the penalty
The driving was serious and we did not suggest otherwise. The question was whether the evidence proved the intention that section 19AC requires. The material we reviewed pointed to an inexperienced driver who panicked, with passengers urging her on, rather than a planned attempt to escape. The speeds alleged were estimates, and key footage had not been disclosed when negotiations began.
2. Put a principled proposal in writing
We wrote to the police prosecution unit with a detailed proposal and a draft statement of agreed facts. The draft admitted that our client was the driver, that she failed to stop and that she entered the intersection against a red light, and acknowledged the risk that created for other road users. It also recorded the passengers’ pressure and her zero breath alcohol reading. We offered pleas to the failing to stop charge and a red light offence on that basis, with the section 19AC charge withdrawn.
3. Weigh the prosecution’s counter offer
The prosecution offered to withdraw both charges if our client pleaded guilty to a single count of aggravated driving without due care. It would not oppose the statutory minimums, would stay silent on penalty, and would not seek more than the minimum 6 month disqualification. By the time of the final hearing, our client had already been off the road for about that long. The offer took the section 19AC charge, with its 3 year maximum and 2 year minimum disqualification, out of the case. She accepted it.
4. Build the case for no conviction
The court received a letter of apology, a letter from her treating psychologist, character references from family and community members, and evidence of the steps she had taken since the incident. We made submissions on her youth, her lack of prior offending, her remorse and her prospects of rehabilitation.
The law on sentence
Section 45 of the Road Traffic Act makes it an offence to drive without due care or attention or without reasonable consideration for other persons using the road. For an aggravated offence, the maximum penalty is 12 months imprisonment, and in most cases the court must disqualify the driver for at least 6 months.
Section 97 of the Sentencing Act 2017 (SA) allows a court that finds a person guilty, if it thinks good reason exists, to discharge them with or without recording a conviction, and without any other penalty, on condition that they enter into a bond to be of good behaviour. Our guide to section 97 good behaviour bonds without conviction explains how the power works.
Outcome
The prosecution withdrew the section 19AC charge and the failing to stop charge, and our client pleaded guilty to aggravated driving without due care. The Port Adelaide Magistrates Court discharged her without recording a conviction on a 10 month good behaviour bond in the sum of $500 under section 97. It imposed the mandatory 6 month disqualification, backdated to the date of the incident, so the disqualification had already been served. She was ordered to pay the statutory levies and a modest amount of prosecution costs, and the court fees were waived.
Key takeaways
- Section 19AC requires proof of an intention to escape, or to cause, a police pursuit. Failing to stop and dangerous driving do not by themselves prove that intention.
- Where intent is genuinely contestable, a written proposal backed by agreed facts can move the case onto a charge that reflects what can be proved.
- Even for an aggravated driving offence, section 97 allows a court to discharge a young first offender without conviction where it thinks good reason exists.
- The mandatory disqualification still applies, but its timing can matter as much as its length.
Related traffic results and guides
- Dangerous driving reduced to due care: case study
- Dangerous driving in South Australia
- Driving without due care in South Australia
- Section 97 good behaviour bond without conviction
Speak with Talon Legal about police pursuit and dangerous driving charges
If you have been charged after failing to stop for police, or with dangerous driving to escape a pursuit, get advice before you enter a plea. Book a same-day free 30-minute consultation or call (08) 7094 2021 to speak with a senior traffic lawyer, or read more on our Traffic Lawyers Adelaide page and our Port Adelaide Magistrates Court page.
This case study describes one matter. Every case turns on its own facts, and past results do not guarantee a similar outcome.
