Jake Wright sentenced for menacing pursuit through Narromine which led to 'tragic accident'

Jake Wright, 19, has fronted court for driving a ute which was involved in a dramatic pursuit through Narromine, on the afternoon of October 9, 2020.

Wright was driving a silver Holden Rodeo - occupied by his brother Marcus Wright in the passenger seat, and another man and woman - when they drove past a Toyota Hilux parked on Pinedean Road, about 15km from Narromine.

According to police, Marcus and a passenger in the Toyota had a "hostile" relationship.

On seeing the Toyota - which was filled with two men and a woman - Wright did a u-turn and headed toward the vehicle.

Believing the occupants in Wright's ute were going to assault them, the Toyota began driving away.

Wright followed the vehicle, when occupants of the Toyota said the ute was struck by an unknown object.

One of the men in the Toyota been recording the incident on a mobile, which police said captured the actions of those in the Holden.

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Wright attempted to drive alongside the Toyota to allegedly allow his brother to throw cans of Jim Beam at the other ute.

The female driver of the Toyota had to manoeuvre the ute to prevent this, police said.

Wright then accelerated to get close to the rear of the Toyota's ute, when his brother allegedly threw three cans at the vehicle, one landing in the tray.

The woman driving the Toyota was worried they would crash and decided to swap seats with the male passenger so he could take over. Police said it was out of fear they did not stop the vehicle while doing this.

The two utes travelled down Pinedean Road and at one point police said Wright had to stop to due to the dust produced from the dirt road.

It's alleged Wright's brother called one of the the women in the Toyota telling them to stop the vehicle. However she told him she was worried they would attack a man in her vehicle.

It's alleged Wright's brother told her if she was going to be "cheeky" he would get the girl in their vehicle to fight her too.

The Toyota arrived back in Narromine and began driving toward the driver's home. But at the intersection of Murgah and Cathundril Street, the Holden found them.

Wright stopped the Holden directly in front of the Toyota in an attempt to stop them. The Toyota managed to drive around, but was followed by Wright who rammed the tray of the other ute.

This was seen by an independent witness.

In an attempt to escape, the Holden went down a laneway at the back of the driver's home, but eventually Wright stopped beside the Toyota, when the ute began to reverse.

Wright's brother allegedly got out and began to assault the driver of the Toyota by punching him in the head.

The Toyota backed into a colorbond fence, before attempting to flee. At this point, the female from the Holden got out to assist Wright's brother who had injured his lower leg, when she stopped in front of the Toyota and was struck.

As a result she suffered multiple spinal fractures, a broken collarbone, a punctured lung and multiple lacerations.

The driver of the Toyota fled to their grandparents' house and contacted police.

Wright was the only one to remain at the scene. It was here police said he gave a false version of events to officers in order to allegedly protect his brother.

He later attended Narromine police station with his mother where he denied all allegations put to him.

Ultimately police said it was the actions of Wright and allegedly his brother which caused circumstances which led directly to the significant injuries of the woman.

Supported by his mother in Narromine Local Court on Tuesday, Wright pleaded guilty to a charge of affray and driving a motor vehicle and menacing another with intent.

Defence lawyer Jai Silkman said the incident was brought about by what he said could be described as "foolish and immature behaviour".

"It's clearly very poor behaviour, very dangerous, very childish behaviour," he said.

He said his client was 18-years-old, and had no criminal record at the time of the offence. Mr Silkman conceded the offending was made more serious by the injuries, he said the injuries were part a "tragic accident".

The court heard Wright's case had been set down for hearing, however Mr Silkman said after amendments to the charges and police facts his client pleaded guilty which offered some utility in his plea.

Magistrate Stephen Olischlager said the degree of fear caused by the circumstances would have been quite high, and said using a car as a way to menace someone and to get involved in an affray undermined people's sense of community.

"You had an opportunity to stand up and make your own decisions to how things could have gone that day, but you didn't," he said.

"At 18, you're an adult, you've got a mind of your own. You could have completely made this drop down, especially in terms of the outcome."

Wright was convicted and sentenced to a two-year community corrections order. He was also fined $800 and disqualified from driving for 12 months.

Marcus Wright appeared via AVL from custody in Narromine Local Court charged with affray and intentionally throwing an object at a vehicle and risking safety.

He was granted bail to attend the Transformations residential rehab in Cowra. His matters will join a hearing in Narromine on February 8 next year.