Participating in a Street Race, Driving Without Due Care, Excessive Speed

Our client was charged with engaging or participating in a street race, driving without due care, speeding in a manner dangerous to the public and exceeding the speed limit at or about 40 kph.

After negotiations with the police prosecution, the charges were downgraded by withdrawal of the serious offences of participate in a street race, driving without due care and speeding in a manner dangerous with a variation of the final charge to speeding at or about 20kph above the sign posted speed limit.

Our client was sentenced to a fine equivalent to that of an expiation fee along with conviction. The circumstances prevailing that the client was happy at the conclusion of the matter as it meant the client was able to continue to hold his driver’s licence and thereby remain in the workforce as the client’s employment relied upon a current driver’s licence.

Had the client been found guilty of the serious offences which were originally laid, not only would a licence disqualification have been imposed but a term of imprisonment of up to three years for a first offence could have been imposed for the street race offence and up to two years imprisonment for driving at a speed dangerous to any person.

In all the circumstances, driving offences such as those referred to above, are significant in terms of loss of licence but can also mean that a person is imprisoned for what is often classified as “hoon driving”.

DISCLAIMER: This is a real case study of an actual case from Caldicott + Isaacs Lawyers. Details of the client have been changed to protect their privacy. The penalty imposed and the charge have not been altered. These case studies are published to demonstrate real outcomes and give an indication of possible penalties in South Australian Courts. Caldicott + Isaacs Lawyers do not guarantee a similar case on these charges will get the same result. Please note that Caldicott + Isaacs Lawyers post results at our discretion, therefore while many case studies are good results, others are notable for their exceptional results.