A banned driver from Warrington has been jailed for assaulting several officers who had tracked him down, including biting one on the arm, after being witnessed driving dangerously.
Christopher Fleming aged 42, appeared at Chester Magistrates’ Court on Friday 14 August, where he was jailed for 14 weeks (three months and one week).
The sentencing comes after Flemming, of Gregory Close, Warrington, pleaded guilty to using a motor vehicle on a public road without insurance, failing to stop for police, driving without due care and attention and driving whilst disqualified.
Fleming had also pleaded guilty to three counts of assaulting a police officer and obstructing an officer in the execution of their duty.
The case against Fleming began on 13 August in the Firs Lane area of Warrington, when an on-duty Police Constable approached a blue BMW 1 Series that was being driven by Fleming, and requested him to remain where he was. The stop was made following a report that a man matching his description had entered a blue BMW, allegedly under the influence of alcohol. Fleming, however, chose to ignore the officer and drove off at speed.
A short time later, an officer from the Rural Crime Team spotted the same BMW driving in excess of the speed limit in the Cromwell Avenue area and made attempts to stop the vehicle.
Again, Fleming wilfully ignored officers and continued driving at high speeds, running a set of red lights, with the officer later finding the BMW in the Helmsdale Lane area, with no sign of the driver.
The force’s Dog Unit was deployed to the scene, with PD Raffi and his handler tracking Fleming to an address on Gregory Close, roughly a mile away.
Officers converged on the scene and the 42-year-old was found inside the address, claiming he had not been out of the property in some time and had not been driving the BMW. It was also uncovered that Fleming had been banned from driving in 2005 and had not yet taken the extended test required of him to regain a driving licence.
Actively resisting attempts the officers made to detain and arrest him, Fleming became violent, making threats and kicking two of the officers and even attempting to grab another’s taser.
Working together, the officers successfully detained the man and placed him in the back of a police van, ready to be taken to custody.
In custody, Fleming also lunged at one of the officers, with his teeth making contact with the officer’s arm.
This resulted in Fleming being taken to the floor as officers worked to calm him down, ensuring he did not harm himself or the officers further as he was secured in the custody cell.
When invited to explain his side of the story in interview, Fleming gave no comment answers to all questions put to him in relation to both the dangerous driving and assault elements of the incident.
Despite this, he chose to plead guilty on his first appearance in court and was sentenced immediately.
Chief Inspector Cameron Taylor said: “Christopher Fleming’s arrest and subsequent conviction was the result of a team-effort; officers from several specialist departments coming together with a common goal in mind: to locate and arrest a dangerous driver who posed a serious risk to other road-users and pedestrians.
“I would like to thank the attending officers for the utmost professionalism they showed throughout this particularly challenging arrest and transfer to custody.
“Our officers do not come to work to be physically assaulted in any form, they come to work to protect the public and bring those who have done wrong to justice – which is exactly the result we have achieved here.”
