What is a police pursuit?
A ‘police pursuit’ (or Skye’s Law) charge is more serious than a ‘fail to stop’ charge. Section 51B of the Crimes Act 1900 provides that:
(1) The driver of a vehicle —
- who knows, ought reasonably to know or has reasonable grounds to suspect that police officers are in pursuit of the vehicle and that the driver is required to stop the vehicle, and
- who does not stop the vehicle, and
- who then drives the vehicle recklessly or at a speed or in a manner dangerous to others, is guilty of an offence.
Note that police MUST prove ALL of the above elements of the offence to find you guilty.
What penalties exist for involvement in a police pursuit?
The maximum penalties for this offence are:
- 3 years imprisonment for a first offence
- 5 years imprisonment for a second or subsequent offence.
- An automatic disqualification of 3 years which can be reduced to the minimum disqualification period which is 12 months.
Our aim is to assist you in achieving the minimum penalty.
What are my options?
Plead Guilty
This option is recommended where you:
- You accept that you knew or had reasonable grounds to suspect that a police officer pursued your vehicle, requiring it to stop; and
- You failed to stop your vehicle; and
- You drove recklessly or in a manner or speed that was dangerous to the public.
What possible outcomes exist when being found guilty?
- A non-conviction via a section 10 – asking the court for leniency
- Leniency is where the court has found you guilty, but has exercised a discretion not to convict you. Therefore, you will avoid:
- a fine or a penalty.
- a loss of any demerit points
- a conviction
- Leniency is where the court has found you guilty, but has exercised a discretion not to convict you. Therefore, you will avoid:
Note: Due to the seriousness of this charge, this outcome is extremely unlikely.
- Conditional release order “CRO”
- This is usually subject to a period of good behaviour.
- If an offence is committed during the period of the order, a court may resentence you for the offence committed.
- Community Corrections Orders (“CCO”)
- An example of a CCO is performing service within the community.
- Intensive Corrections Order (“ICO”)
- This is where a term of imprisonment can be served in the community.
- Full-time imprisonment
- Served in correctional facility.
Note: Over 50% of first-time offenders receive a prison sentence for this offence. It is therefore wise to retain a lawyer to assist you in court if charged with this offence.
What factors influence what happens in court?
- Aggravating factors (EG. Other people in the car, speed.)
- Mitigating factors (EG. your personal or factual circumstances.)
- Your criminal history
- Your traffic history
- Whether you have completed the Traffic Offenders Intervention Program
Plead Not Guilty
Possible defences are:
- Duress – you were coerced against your will to keep driving
- Necessity – you kept driving to avoid a greater harm from occurring.
- You held an honest and reasonable belief that you were not being pursued by police. EG.
- You were unaware that police required you to stop your vehicle, or
- you were not speeding or being reckless, or
- you stopped when you realised you were being pursued, or
- the police car was a long distance from your vehicle.
We can negotiate with police to attempt to have the charge against you withdrawn, or replaced with a less serious charge, thereby avoiding a hearing.
Let us help. Get in Touch.
Appointments can be conducted via:
- zoom,
- phone or
- face-to-face at our office.
World Square
Level 45, 680 George Street,
SYDNEY NSW 2000.
P: (02) 9145 1262 or 0407 122 230
By appointment only