A Cotswold man who is due to have his leg amputated has been jailed for dangerous driving.

Martin Harwood, of London Road in Little Compton, will spend ten months behind bars for driving a flatbed truck dangerously after his licence had been revoked due to his disability.

The 47-year-old had limited use of his left leg at the time of the offence, during which he tried twice to ram a pursuing police car before smashing through a farm gate to make his getaway, Gloucester Crown Court heard.

The judge, Recorder Neil Millard, said the offence was “so serious” that only an immediate prison sentence could suffice, despite the operation set to take place in the coming weeks.

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Prosecutor Neil Treharne explained that during the early hours of December 1, 2023, Harwood was spotted driving without rear lights on in the North Cotswolds by PC Gareth Morris.

In a pursuit that lasted around 20 minutes, Harwood sped through Bourton-on-the-Hill and Moreton at speeds of 60mph and 70mph respectively.

He also tried twice to ram the pursuing police car, with the officer able to move out of the way on each occasion.

Eventually, the truck smashed through gates and onto a farmyard, at which point a passenger jumped out and ran off.

The police officer, who was in a 4x4, abandoned the pursuit before Harwood stopped near some caravans on the site.

The officer waited for backup, including a dog handling team, and Harwood was then arrested from one of the caravans.

Alicia Doble, defending, asked the judge for the sentence to be suspended due to Harwood’s upcoming operation.

She explained his driving licence was revoked due to an ulcer on his left leg, caused by an accident in 1993 in which his tibia and fibula were broken.

This was fixed with a metal plate but repeated infections meant the decision was made to amputate it.

Ms Doble added: “He essentially panicked when he saw the police car and that was the reason he didn’t stop. He realises now that this was a huge mistake with serious consequences.

“Largely by luck nobody was injured by his bad driving as there were very few other vehicles on the road at that time.

“He has expressed genuine remorse for his actions and, through me, he apologises to the court for his bad driving that night.”

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Harwood pleaded guilty to dangerous driving and not having a valid driving licence or third-party insurance.

Recorder Millard told Harwood: “It’s a matter of sheer luck that nobody was injured.

“You posed a risk to other road users, especially to commercial vehicles. You had no rear lights. You drove the wrong side of a bollard.

“You also tried to reverse into the police car on at least two occasions. You were trying to disable it to prevent the officer continuing the pursuit.

“Had it not been for the quick actions of PC Morris, you would have rammed the police vehicle.

“You also conducted a number of U-turns during the pursuit."

Harwood was jailed for ten months and banned from driving for three years.

The disqualification will begin when he is released from prison and Harwood will have to take an extended retest before he can obtain his licence after the ban ends.