A Lincolnshire driver who had never held a licence was jailed after Lincoln Crown Court heard how he drove at 110 mph in an attempt to evade police.
Tracy Hercules was driving in March this year a Mercedes Benz in the Spalding area when a police car approached with its blue flashing lights and siren on.
The police vehicle was on its way to an unrelated incident, but Hercules mistakenly believed that it was him that the officers were interested in and sped off.
Edna Leonard, prosecuting, said Hercules pulled out in front of the police car and then drove at 110 mph in a 60 limit area in a bid to get away.
Miss Leonard said Hercules was then involved in a 25-minute pursuit along the A16 at Surfleet, onto Hop Pole and Deeping St Nicholas and then onto the A1175.
He twice went through red traffic lights and caused other drivers to take evasive action to avoid a collision.
At one point he smashed into a traffic bollard while turning right and damaged his vehicle.
Smoke was coming from the tyres but Hercules continued driving at high-speed going through Baston at 60 mph in a 30-limit area causing fear to two pedestrians.
Police deployed a stinger device in a bid to stop him but he drove through it and again reached 100 mph before losing control of his car and ending up in a ditch.
Hercules emerged from the car uninjured and was arrested soon afterwards.
The court was told that Hercules had previous convictions for driving without a licence and driving with no insurance.
As a result of the incident on March 8 this year Hercules, 22, of Wellington Way, Market Deeping, admitted charges of dangerous driving, having no licence, having no insurance and possession of a small amount of cannabis found in his car.
He was jailed for eight months and banned from driving for 22 months.
Recorder Charles Falk, passing sentence, told him: “This was seriously bad driving.
“You put your life in danger, the lives of police officers in danger and the lives of members of the public in danger.
“It is aggravated because you were not insured and have never passed a driving test. You were not entitled to drive a car yet you had purchased this car.”
Leanne Summers, in mitigation, said Hercules’s mother died when he was 12 and he had no contact at that time with his father.
By the age of 15 he was living on his own in rented accommodation and she told the court: “He had to find his own way and sometimes in doing so he has not made the best decisions.”
Miss Summers said that Hercules later moved in with his partner and her family which gave him stability but at the time of the incident had moved out.
She said Hercules is now back living with his partner and they are expecting a child later this year.
“He is now working as a landscape gardener. There is a support network in place that was lacking for him as a child. He is remorseful and willing to engage with the probation service.”
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A woman who denies the murder of her former partner at a property in Boston has been refused bail by a Crown Court judge.
Charlie Stevenson, now 21, of Portland Street, Boston, was arrested on July 14 and charged with the murder of Christopher Higgs, also 21.
Her trial is due to begin at Lincoln Crown Court on January 4 next year. It is expected to last seven days.
Judge John Pini QC today (Monday) refused an application to grant Stevenson conditional bail during a hearing Lincoln Crown Court.
Mr Higgs, from Spalding, was found with a serious stab wound to the chest on Wednesday, July 14, after police received reports at around 12.13pm that day.
He was pronounced dead at the scene in Portland Street, Boston.
Stevenson, who is remanded in custody and was not present during the bail hearing, has previously pleaded not guilty to a charge of murder at hearing in August.
A Lincoln woman will be sentenced for wounding next month after she denied an offence of attempted murder.
Fiona Lewis, 40, was warned to expect a prison sentence by the judge after she appeared at Lincoln Crown Court on Monday morning.
Lewis, of Reynolds House, Turner Avenue, Lincoln, pleaded not guilty to a charge of attempting to murder Lilette Lewis on October 31 last year.
But Lewis, who appeared in court by video-link from custody, admitted an alternative charge of wounding Lillette Lewis with intent to cause her grievous bodily harm on the same date.
The plea was accepted by the Crown Prosecution Service and Lewis will now be sentenced at Lincoln Crown Court on November 22.
Judge John Pini QC agreed to adjourn the case for the preparation of a pre-sentence report on Lewis – but warned her that a custodial sentence was inevitable.
The judge told Lewis: “At some point you will be seen by the probation service, but that is not an indication of sentence. This is a very serious matter.”
Lewis was remanded back into custody until she is sentenced.
New homes and businesses in Cherry Willingham could open the way for a new marina to be built if plans are approved.
West Lindsey District Council backed in 2018 the “Willingham Fen Marina” project – which included a 220 berth marina, 155 homes and businesses, and now the first phase of the project has been submitted for final approval.
Documents before the authority said applicant Dean Sempers had already spent £3 million on initial engineering works on the marina, but that the houses were needed to both reimburse the spending and enable the project to move ahead further.
“What can be taken from this is the huge commitment shown by the landowner to bring this project forward,” said the report.
“It should be clear to any observer that the marina will now come to fruition as soon as it is possible to deliver moorings to the basin.
“Any concerns that the enabling development might be ‘cherry picked’ and the various public benefits not implemented should certainly now be alleviated.”
Plans for how the area could be laid out when finished.
The business will include 663 sqm of flexible employment spaces across three buildings, while the houses will be a mix of two and two-and-a-half storey builds, which have also been developed to help deliver working from home opportunities.
“This proposal demonstrates a well-connected development that responds to an understanding of the site’s context within the open countryside, but also provides a new, integrated part of Cherry Willingham, taking design and place-making cues from the most positive aspects of the village’s character,” said the report.
Street scenes presented to West Lindsey District Council.
Street scenes presented to West Lindsey District Council.
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