Dangerous driver brought puppy to court as he was jailed following 100mph chase on A18
A defendant's puppy had to be cared for by court staff after he was jailed for dangerous driving.
Caring security staff provided food and cleaned up after the nine-week-old dog urinated and defecated on the floor of the foyer at Grimsby Crown Court.
Vincent Harvey, 46, of Fish Ponds Road West, Sheffield, appeared at the court with the puppy in a portable crate.
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He went into the dock while court staff looked after the dog, in the hope that he would receive a suspended sentence and walk out with his puppy.
However, after pleading guilty to dangerous driving on the A18 near Grimsby following an incident during which he was pursued by police at over 100mph, he was jailed.
Harvey also admitted driving on a provisional licence and without insurance.
Prosecuting, Ashley Lambert-Jefferson told the court a Fiat 500 was reported stolen in the Sheffield area on March 23.
At 9.50pm, Humberside Police Sergeant Mitchell Walker was on patrol in an unmarked police car and spotted a Fiat that had its registration plate altered by tape turning a zero into an eight. The officer trailed the car and noticed it overtake another vehicle at speed near to Humberside Airport. It continued to reach speeds of 90mph to 95mph approaching Great Limber.
Going through the village, the car was clocked at 70mph and straddling double white lines. There was oncoming traffic.
The police officer activated blue lights and the police chase went further along the A18 to Keelby. At one point the Fiat driver slowed down and put on hazard lights to fool the police sergeant and pretend to stop. But the getaway car sped up and was recorded at 100mph towards Keelby.
Close to Brocklesby estate entrance, the driver pulled over and was arrested.
Mr Lambert-Jefferson told how the driver had shown disregard for other road users and risked pedestrians in residential areas in villages. He showed dashcam footage from the pursuing police car.
Harvey was unrepresented in court but told the judge he had not stolen the car. He claimed it was his sister's car and a friend had notified him that it was parked on a driveway in Sheffield. He said that, when he went to collect it, a van turned up so he fled.
"It chased me. That's why I ended up in Grimsby," he said.
Recorder Andrew Haslam KC said it was "merciful" there had not been many road users on the A18 at the time of the police chase.
"You deliberately decided to ignore the rules of the road with no regard for the danger to others. There was a risk to other members of the public," said Recorder Haslam KC.
He said the 100mph police chase was "a serious offence of bad driving." He jailed Harvey for eight months and banned him from driving for two years and four months and ordered him to take an extended retest.
The incarceration of the defendant left court officials with a decision of how to care for the puppy.
One court official offered to take the dog home. He said: "I think I will rename it DD for dangerous driving."
Security officials Beverley Owen and Steve Dyball fed the French bull dog cross. Beverley said: "Really we shouldn't have to do this but we can't not. What can you do?"
Staff said they keep dog food to feed foxes that occasionally creep around the court precincts.
A friend of the defendant was contacted to pick up the puppy.