A motorbike rider and his friend were charged after a GoPro camera fitted to one of their helmets provided police with evidence of their illegal driving.
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Andrew Pearson, 34, of Myall Street in Dubbo represented himself in court and pleaded guilty to reckless driving, driving without a licence and driving an unregistered vehicle.
"Your [driving] record is not that bad... just having fun? How come this all came about?," magistrate Gary Wilson questioned Pearson who remained silent.
Mr Wilson also asked him why he had never applied for a licence.
"I don't know; I didn't have any interest... probably should've." Pearson told the court.
According to police, Pearson and the co-accused left a Cobborah Road residence on their respective motorcycles around 8.20 pm on June 24 last year.
Pearson rode a white and red Honda 250 while his friend rode a orange and white KTM 450. Police said both bikes did not have driving lights and were unregistrable.
The co-accused had a GoPro camera attached to his helmet which recorded the following events.
The two began riding west on Cobborah Road without lighting on the bikes or on themselves, and took turns to do wheelies.
They went to Macquarie Street in Dubbo's city centre and continue to ride their bikes on rear wheels. During this time, they rode through pedestrian crossings without slowing down or looking for people on the road.
Police said the pair rode through a red light on Cobra Street and then went on to the wrong side of the rode while pulling the front wheels of their motorcycles in the air. Pearson and the co-accused repeated this pattern near the intersection of Mitchell and Newell highways, again running through a red light.
Pearson turned right onto Alfred Street then continued down to Whylandra Street. There were no lights along that route and GoPro footage showed he had extremely low visibility.
On Whylandra Street, Pearson jumped his motorcycle on to the median strip and rode on it until he reached Blight Street. After returning to Macquarie Street, he is once again seen to ride on the opposite side of the road, according to police.
Pearson and the co-accused met up along Cobra Street where they sped up and rode on their rear wheels. As they approached the Brisbane Street intersection, the co-accused did not see a turning vehicle in time and could not stop his bike.
Police said this resulted in Pearson's friend colliding with the passenger side of the vehicle's back door.
The footage showed Pearson circling his friend telling him to "get the f--k up bro! Oi get the f--k up... get up bro." However, his friend remained injured on the ground.
An off duty police officer who was nearby saw what had happened and arrested the pair. He also got hold of the GoPro camera that the co-accused tried to hide under his arm. The co-accused was taken to Dubbo Base Hospital for his injuries.
"Your mate injured?," magistrate Gary Wilson asked Pearson in court on January 18.
"Pretty badly," he replied.
"Your words weren't very comforting were they?," Mr Wilson said.
For reckless driving, Pearson was ordered to pay a fine of $500 and disqualified from driving for a year. He was fined a further $200 for driving without a licence and convicted without further penalty for using an unregistered vehicle.
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Bageshri Savyasachi
Bageshri Savyasachi (she/her) is passionate about telling community stories and shining a light on issues that need attention. Email: bageshri.savyasachi@austcommunitymedia.com.au
Bageshri Savyasachi (she/her) is passionate about telling community stories and shining a light on issues that need attention. Email: bageshri.savyasachi@austcommunitymedia.com.au
