A Pembrokeshire woman’s actions in the aftermath of a serious accident have been branded ‘an appalling piece of driving’ by a crown court judge.

Leanne Thomas, 41, of Meyler Crescent, Milford Haven, appeared at Swansea Crown Court on Tuesday, February 14, for sentencing.

She had previously admitted dangerous driving, driving without a licence, driving without insurance, failing to stop when requested to do so by officers and failing to provide a breath specimen, when she appeared in court in Haverfordwest.

Magistrates previously heard that Thomas had driven through the scene of a serious accident in Steynton on Sunday, January 29, despite officers having closed the road.

Crown Prosecutor Kelly Rivers said that Thomas had mounted the pavement and then sped up the road.

“Police officers heard the debris from the scene crunch under her wheels.”

Officers had tried to stop her on numerous occasions, but she continued to drive forwards, causing one of the officers to jump out of the way, otherwise the car would have collided with him.

Thomas was due to be sentenced on Tuesday, however Judge Mr Recorder Simon Hughes heard that a pre-sentence report (PSR) had not been prepared by the probation service.

In Thomas’ defence it was said that, even though she had antecedents, she had managed to get her life back on track after she met her partner in 2017.

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Unfortunately he died in December 2021 and the anniversary of his death, as well his birthday and the anniversary of when they first got together, both in late January, had been triggering and caused Thomas to turn to drink.

The court heard that Thomas had the support of external agencies in dealing with her problems and that a PSR would be useful to inform sentencing.

“My initial view is that this case passes the custody threshold. There may be merit in suspending the sentence if she is going to turn her life around,” said Recorder Hughes.

He added it was only fair that Thomas she should have the benefit of a PSR.

However, he warned Thomas that she could go straight to prison.

“This was an appalling piece of driving during which you endangered police officers,” he said.

“There is a likelihood that you will face a custodial sentence and a likelihood that this will be immediate. Nonetheless it is important that you avail yourself of all the sentencing options.”

 

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