Father rammed car to protect his son
A father who rammed a car to protect his son who was being pursued by five vehicles has been disqualfied from driving and ordered to do 100 hours of community work.
Stephen Paul Bolton, 57, believed his son was going to be assaulted by the people pursuing him in the other cars, and he rammed one of them without realising people had got out of it, his defence counsel Mark Callaghan said at the Christchurch District Court sentencing.
Witnesses said the people getting out of the car he rammed were armed with bottles intending to attack his son and the people in the car with him, Mr Callaghan said.
Bolton, of Fernside, had admitted two charges of dangerous driving causing injury.
He said Bolton was driving at the car, and it was extremely dangerous, but his perception of what was going to happen was reality. He had no other option, rightly or wrongly, than to do what he did.
He knew his son could take care of himself, so knew it was serious when he asked for help, he said.
Crown prosecutor Barnaby Hawes said there was significant fault on both sides, the car being chased was at fault as well, with bottles being thrown out of it.
He said it was reasonable to expect that Bolton’s son and his friends didn’t tell Bolton what they had done to the people chasing them to “wind them up”.
Judge Raoul Neave said the son was able to take care of himself, as he had already “laid someone out” in an earlier incident, and that was what started the chase.
He said the incident started at 11pm in Moorhouse Avenue when there was a confrontation between Bolton’s son and unknown male. A punch was thrown at his son, and his son knocked out another male.
This generated a degree of ill-feeling, and in the early hours on May 12 a convoy of five cars chased the car Bolton’s son was in, into rural North Canterbury.
One of the occupants called for help, and told Bolton they were heading to his address.
Bolton drove past the cars, did a u-turn and rammed the car which had stopped, hitting two occupants, who were injured.
Judge Neave said it was a warning nudge, but an incredibly dangerous manoeuvre.
He said it turned out that some of Bolton’s fears were justified as some occupants had left the vehicle armed with bottles.
He told Bolton he was not going to order the confiscation of his car, but said that regardless of the provocation his actions were exceptionally dangerous and had an element of taking the law into his own hands.
He order reparation of $175 to the injured person, and $1250 to the owner, who was not the driver, of the car Bolton rammed.
He disqualified Bolton from driving for three months and sentenced him to do 100 hours community work which could be converted to training.
Category: News
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