6 month disqualification for driving whilst disqualified

Successful Outcome for Driving Whilst Disqualified

Our Solicitor, Stephanie McClelland represented a young male at Fairfield Local Court in relation to the following offence:

• Drive Motor Vehicle Whilst Disqualified- Second or Subsequent Offence- pursuant to Section 54(1)(a) of the Roads Transport Act 2013.

Circumstances of the Offence

Our client was charged with driving a motor vehicle with a suspended licence as a first offence, where he was subsequently disqualified from driving for a period of three months, commencing in March 2021. In late April 2021, our client was stopped by an unmarked police vehicle who noticed our client travelling above the sign posted speed limit. A random breath test was conducted which produced a negative reading, and subsequent checks revealed that our client had been disqualified from driving. When questioned about the disqualification, our client stated that he believed he was still suspended. A Field Court Attendance Notice was issued to our client. 

Submissions

On sentence, Ms McClelland made submissions regarding our client’s otherwise good character based on character references, and further submissions related to the health of our client, financial situation, future need for a licence on the basis that our client was the carer of his mother and grandmother, and wanted to maintain a relationship with his daughter. The need for a licence was further submitted as our client was recently let go from employment due to a prior licence disqualification.

Outcome Achieved

The Magistrate did not accept our submissions to make an order for a non-conviction as our client had a number of demerit point offences, and that this occasion was not the first time he had been found by Police to be driving whilst disqualified. However, our submissions in relation to our client’s medical needs for a licence were significantly considered. Subsequently, the Magistrate proceeded by way of conviction, disqualifying our client for a period of 6 months pursuant to section 10A of the Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act 1999. This is a favourable outcome, considering our client had incurred 70 demerit points over the past 3 years.