"One breach too far": Judge jails driver at Leeds Crown Court for driving whilst banned and on a suspended sentence

His Honour Judge Clark sent Joseph Shields to prison after Leeds Crown Court heard of a string of offences had led to the sentencing hearing on Friday morning.

On March 5 2021, a police officer in an unmarked vehicle spotted Shields on Levita Place, Bradford - where he also lives - driving a van with a Peugeot car loaded on the back. The officer noticed Shields fail to give way at a junction and followed the van and stopped it.

Prosecution barrister Temitayo Dasaolu said Shields got out of the vehicle via the passenger door and denied driving it. But, when he demanded to see the officer's dash-cam footage he admitted being the driver and having no licence as he was disqualified, but gave "no comment" answers to every question in police interview.

Ms Dasaolu told the hearing Shields had 12 previous convictions for 20 offences, most of which were driving related or breaches of previous court orders.

The most recent one was a conviction in June 2020 for dangerous driving (committed in April 2019) where Shields was given a six month prison term suspended for 18 months, an 18 month driving ban and requirement to take another test - so when the March 2021 offence took place these terms were still in order.

The most previous offence to these was said to be October 2019.

Shields, aged 30, had pleaded guilty at Kirklees Magistrates' Court on January 22 to the first offence of driving while disqualified. For this he was given two months in prison to run consecutive and disqualified for 18 months.

He had also pleaded guilty to a second offence of driving without insurance. For this he had his licence endorsed with no separate penalty.

The offences put him in breach of the suspended sentence order, imposed at Bradford Crown Court on June 24, 2020, and he was sentenced to four months imprisonment..

Defence barrister, Ian Hudson, said: "He lives with his father and partner, they have two children and another one on the way in a couple of months. They seek to obtain their own property and he wants to change his lifestyle. He seems to have done that successfully but driving seems to be the reason he has trouble with the courts in recent years. He hopes there will be light at the end of the tunnel where he can properly and legitimately apply for a licence."

Sending him down. Judge Clark added: "You are 30-years-old and have 20 convictions. But there is mitigation in your case. There is credit for your guilty plea and a reference. You are in a stable relationship, a father looking for your own home to live in. But, this breach is just one too many in your case."

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