A drink-driver who caused £30,000 damage to two cars and a Carlisle house before motoring away with sparks and smoke pouring from his damaged pick-up vehicle has been jailed.
CCTV footage played at the city’s crown court this morning showed a child running across the street seconds before Mark Allen’s Ford Ranger crashed outside an address on Buchanan Road in Currock on the evening of Easter Saturday, April 8.
Two householders sat in their front room then heard a huge bang as the Ranger struck a Volkswagen Caddy and Kia Sportage causing a shunted collision with the house. The Kia was damaged to the tune of £13,500, the Caddy £9,000 and the house £7,500.
A bystander saw Allen, 49, driving off and was so concerned that she called police, followed the Ford and provided a running commentary as it headed towards the city centre.
Multiple further calls were made by stunned members of the public as the badly damaged vehicle was seen pulling to the right north along Botchergate and towards the opposite side of the road, almost hitting an oncoming bus.
Smoke and sparks were seen as it travelled on to Lowther Street and then Victoria Place heading in the direction of Hardwicke Circus.
Two police officers on duty in an unmarked vehicle in the city centre responded. “They followed the marks that were burned into the road,” said prosecutor Tim Evans.
They headed up on to Stanwix Bank and initially found the pick-up had been abandoned. “Ten minutes later the driver returned to the scene with responsible members of his family who had been looking for him,” said Mr Evans.
Allen, of Woodrouffe Terrace, Carlisle, failed a roadside breath test and was almost twice the legal drink-drive limit during a police station test. He admitted driving with excess alcohol, dangerous driving, failing to stop and possessing personal use cannabis which was found inside his vehicle.
Mr Evans spoke of Allen’s admissions to police, saying: “He said that he had been having a bad day. He apparently had some sort of argument at a party and thought driving off was the way to go.”
Defence solicitor Jeff Smith gave mitigation for Allen, a previously convicted drink-driver. “He doesn’t feel sorry for himself. He knows he is probably the luckiest man here in this courtroom this morning. The consequences could have been dramatic, tragic,” said Mr Smith.
Jailing Allen for 10 months, Recorder Tony Hawks drew attention to a probation officer’s conclusion that he had sought to minimise his offending and was described as having a lack of victim empathy.
He said: “Anybody who has seen the footage would be appalled at what happened. It is no consolation to those who were terrified by your behaviour and were left out of pocket as a result of the mayhem that you caused that you were having a bad day.”
Allen must serve a two-year driving ban when released from custody and pass an extended test before his licence is returned.
