DAMAGE: A police vehicle damaged during the second pursuit.
A YOUNG driver who accrued more than 70 driving charges over a six-month period pleaded guilty at Ballarat Magistrates Court yesterday.Sebastopol's Wayne Patmore originally faced 116 charges, but the prosecution withdrew less than half, leaving 75.They include reckless conduct endangering serious injury, careless driving, failing to stop at a red traffic light, speeding, unlicensed driving and theft from a shop.The 19-year-old's extensive charges prompted local police to speak out about the dangers of committing driving offences.The court heard Patmore's offending started in October and escalated in April and June when he was continually caught driving while unlicensed, driving an unregistered motor vehicle and using false number plates.Police prosecutor Bob Anderson told the court that on one occasion on April 17 Patmore was intercepted in Mair St where police told him not to drive, but 20 minutes later he was pulled over again in Peel St.He said the next night Patmore stole number plates from a car at the Central Square car park, fixed them to his Holden Apollo and drove to a bottle shop to steal a slab of beer.The court heard Patmore led police on two high-speed pursuits around the Ballarat CBD within 22 hours of each other.Sgt Anderson said Patmore and a passenger were in a burgundy Hyundai Excel when the pursuits started on June 6 and June 7.He said Patmore reached speeds of up to 150kmh in Sturt St while driving on the wrong side of the road during the first pursuit.The court heard that during the second pursuit, police attempted to intercept the car in Mair St and Patmore drove over a median strip and hit with the front of a police divisional van.The court heard briefly from defence lawyer Mike Wardell, who said his client had an intellectual disability.Patmore was remanded in custody until August 13 for a psychiatric report. Ballarat Traffic Management Unit Sergeant Ross Humphrey said yesterday police pursuits were serious offences and people who tried to flee police would get caught and be charged."People endanger themselves and the public and police don't tolerate it," Sgt Humphrey said.
