Driver jailed after 90mph crash in city street
DANGEROUS driver Glenn Reilly has been jailed for 12 months after he crashed his car when travelling at more than 90mph in a busy residential area.
The 28-year-old father was under the influence of alcohol when he drove his BMW 520 in Waterloo Road, Cobridge, at 11.55pm on June 30, Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court heard yesterday.
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Prosecutor David Bennett said witnesses estimated the car was travelling at between 70mph and 90mph from Burslem.
As he approached the junction with Rushton Road, Reilly tried to overtake a Toyota Land Cruiser turning into Rushton Road. But he struck the vehicle and carried on, on the wrong side of the road.
He then hit a stationary Skoda Fabia taxi, which had stopped in the road after the driver saw the first crash.
Mr Bennett said: "The defendant's car and the taxi ended up in a wall at the junction with Grove Street, 0.6 miles from where the first car was struck."
The court heard about £2,000 damage was caused to the wall. All three vehicles were damaged and the defendant's car and the taxi were both written-off.
The taxi driver suffered a badly broken leg and fractured a bone in his spine and was in hospital for 10 days. And the female driver of the Land Cruiser was also injured.
Reilly also suffered a broken leg and a ruptured spleen.
He refused to supply any blood for analysis but the court heard he appeared to be under the influence of alcohol. He was abusive to staff and a doctor described him as extremely drunk and slurring his words.
Reilly, of Bernard Grove, Meir Heath, pleaded guilty to dangerous driving.
The court heard he has previous convictions including for excess alcohol in 2003, being drunk and disorderly in 2009, an excess alcohol from December 2010 and driving without due care and attention and failing to stop after an accident in March last year.
Mark Jones, mitigating, conceded it was a terrible incident, but said although alcohol has been a feature in his previous convictions Reilly has no history of dangerous driving.
He added that the defendant voluntarily referred himself for help and is now abstaining from alcohol. He asked Judge Paul Glenn to consider suspending any prison sentence.
But the judge said the matter was so serious only an immediate custodial sentence could be justified and he jailed Reilly for 12 months. He also disqualified him from driving for five years and until he passes an extended test.
Judge Glenn said: "You have a bad driving record.
"You were on bail at the time of this offence.
"On the evidence before me you are a bad driver.
"You drove at grossly excessive speed on Waterloo Road, which is a busy road in a residential area with a 30mph limit.
"Your speed was estimated by other motorists to be in excess of 70mph, one puts it as high as 90mph.
"You are very fortunate not to have killed someone or to have killed yourself. I think you are a danger to other road users."







28 Comments
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by nelsonl
Tuesday, March 06 2012, 12:53PM
“He is a nuisance who will only stop when he kills someone.
Shame the Skoda he hit wasnt a 10 ton lorry , that would of put a stop to his stupid antics.
like HRMark says, anyone got a spare shovel, he ought to be made to dig his own grave, and when the scum does kill himself, just chuck him in it and fill it in, the best place for rubbish to go”
by ISaidSo
Sunday, February 12 2012, 6:25PM
“I sure hope this Guy has a NOT so nice night in his UK prison cell... Lol... What a joker he is...
The police reports of his crazy p()sed up driving only covers the times he actually got caught, and I wonder as to how many times he drove p(ssed up and didn't get caught?
This re-accruing P()shead needs to be locked up for much longer, but my only wish would be to send him to a prison in say:- Pakistan, Russian or similar just so he would lose his visitation rights and he would then also have to share a cell with up to 20 other foreign speaking people, this would then P(ss him off, as he would not be able to communicate with anybody who would understand him… Isolation is the best way for a RE-PEATING CONVICT like him… I say rot in hell you scumbag.”
by HRMark
Sunday, February 12 2012, 6:11PM
“....'aout' by the way is an old English word meaning 'with severe strength'....”
by HRMark
Sunday, February 12 2012, 6:04PM
“What about DoctorDo's English master giving the blighter some justice aout with his cane....it all depends on your / you're attitude....”
by DoctorDo
Sunday, February 12 2012, 5:36PM
“Oops typo!!
Should have been 'your' not 'you're'.
My old English master would have caned me to within an inch of my life for that one.”
by HRMark
Sunday, February 12 2012, 5:30PM
“Give the lad some support.......an unlimited supply of Tennet's Super on the condition that he tests drive a McLaren F1 at the same time.......keeps everyone's happy....anyone got a spare shovel?”
by DoctorDo
Sunday, February 12 2012, 5:02PM
“The maximum penalty for this offence is two years imprisonment. Given the defendant's guilty plea it would have been impossible for him to have been gaoled for much longer. The Judge has no option but to give a 1/3 reduction off the maximum term for a guilty plea making the maximum in this case 16 months.
His driving ban starts when he's released from prison, the law in this respect changed a couple of years ago.
@ GReilly1206
You're support for your family member is commendable. However, you are attempting to defend the indefensible. A great many people, and their families, suffer from the effects of alcohol addiction; they don't though choose to repeatedly put others in danger as Mr. Reilly has done.”
by nelsonl
Sunday, February 12 2012, 4:34PM
“@GReilly1206 i understand about drink issues, i recently lost my brother aged 45 who had drink issues.
But surely your brother knows the law, and that he should not drive while under the influence, and certainly not at the speeds he was doing.
I dont know what issues you have in your family, but no matter what, it is doesnt warrent someone driving round p*ss*d at 90mph in 30 mph areas.
Before you think im having a personal dig at you or your brother i an am not, if it was anybody i would be saying the same thing. What would of happened if one of the cars your brother hit had young childen in, and all were killed by the impact, and they were part of your family, how would you address the situation then? Or if it was another driver driving at those speeds under the infuence and could of potentially killed part of your family would you be so tolerant, i dont think so.
In my opinion he has had a lucky escape with only getting 12 months, he could of had a life sentance in the Crem or a cemetery.”
by Johntoe
Sunday, February 12 2012, 12:15PM
“@ GReilly1206,
I have every sympathy for you and your family, after all, they and you are not guilty of any crime, and will no doubt be sad and upset (understandably) at having a family member locked up,
BUT, forgive me if I have MORE sympathy for the poor man whose leg was broken by your brother, because HE was just going about the business of earning a living, and forgive me if I have more sympathy for the injured woman and for the owners of the cars that your drunken brother smashed into,
Alcoholism is NOT "an illness" it's an addiction and no different than heroin addiction or any other hard drug, the 'illness' line is used as an excuse, and yes, I DO have family members who are addicted to the wet drug, it killed my father, did I say "it wasn't his fault he was ill"? No I didn't, He was an addict and it killed him.
Also, I have been the victim of a drunken idiot behind the wheel of a car, When I was 17 I was on the back of a mates motorbike we were hit head on by a 'poor misunderstood alcoholic' in a car, My friend was killed and my leg was almost torn off, I spent 5 months in hospital 3 years off work, and still limp 42 years later, So don't expect ME to feel sorry for your poor alky brother,
if it was up to ME he would do a minimum of 5 years and be banned for LIFE, and if he got caught behind the wheel again, he would instantly be banged up for 10 years,”
by ghosts
Sunday, February 12 2012, 9:08AM
“Sorry for his family but at the end of the day he musn't care much for them either....he certainly don't care about anyone else on the road......drinking comes first......better off in prison, but should have been much longer and then he could have dried out....”