A disqualified Berkeley driver has breathed a sigh of relief in court after being sentenced to five months behind bars for taking police on a high-speed chase through an active school zone in a dangerously unroadworthy vehicle.
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P-plater Casey-Jayne Christensen admitted she'd been "expecting worse" when it came to the jail term she thought she would receive over July 1 incident, given her shocking prior record for traffic violations.
"I really appreciate it your Honour," Christensen said after Magistrate Claire Girotto announced the sentence in Wollongong Local Court on Friday. "I'm extremely disappointed in myself."
Documents tendered to the court reveal police were patrolling West Wollongong when they spotted the 22-year-old behind the wheel of an unregistered gold Ford Fairmont sedan.
The officers immediately saw the vehicle was in a state of disrepair, noting it had bald tyres, no side mirrors, a broken tail light and severe rust throughout the body.
They also saw the vehicle had no front registration plate and that Christensen wasn't wearing a seatbelt.
Christensen passed the police vehicle and immediately sped off, accelerating west on Mount Keira Road.
Officers gave chase, reaching speeds of up to 120km/h in the signposted 50km/h zone.
They said Christensen slowed down as the Fairmont entered the school zone near Mount Keira Public School.
She pulled to the left side of the road and tried to do U-turn but underestimated the turning circle and came to stop in gutter.
The police vehicle pulled up directly in front of Fairmont, but Christensen reversed the Ford and travelled around the police vehicle.
Officers terminated the pursuit as Christensen neared the West Wollongong Primary school zone.
They discovered the Fairmont abandoned in Ambleside Avenue a short time later. Christensen was found in the adjacent street and arrested.
She was charged with a host of driving offences including police pursuit, driving disqualified and using an unsafe vehicle.
Christensen was remanded in custody without bail. She entered pleas of guilty to all of the charges against her at a court hearing in July.
In handing down the sentence on Friday, Magistrate Girotto said the chase incident was not the worst version of a police pursuit she'd seen.
She also took into account Christensen's traumatic childhood and her resulting history of drug and alcohol abuse as mitigating factors in sentencing.
Christensen will be released on a seven-month parole period in November this year.
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