Judge sentences dangerous driver in ‘rare’ case of 140mph police pursuit in Northampton

A driver has been sentenced to a community order after fleeing police at speeds of up to 140mph on the A45 in Northampton.

Kie Cooper, aged 20, of Waddensbrook Lane in Wolverhampton, appeared at Northampton Crown Court on Wednesday, February 15 after pleading guilty to dangerous driving, failing to stop for police and driving without insurance.

The court heard that, at around 1am on October 16, 2022 Cooper was driving his car on the A45 in Northampton when he noticed police driving behind him. He accelerated away at speeds of over 140mph on the 70mph dual carriageway and failed to stop for police.

Serena Varatharajah, prosecuting, said Cooper was driving so fast that police had to stop pursuit.

Police were able to find Cooper again on the A45 at 4am and, again, Cooper sped away at over 140mph, the court heard. After an eight minute chase, Cooper pulled over and he was arrested.

Ms Varatharajah said Cooper told police, “I am sorry for putting everyone in danger,” and explained that he “panicked” because he was not insured.

Liam Muir, in mitigation, described Cooper as “a young man, who is disgusted by his actions.”

The court heard that probation officers view him as a low risk of serious harm given his lack of previous convictions, the level of remorse he has shown and no further offending.

Mr Muir said: “He is a bright young man who acted completely out of character in a foolish show of panic. He is likely to be someone who will never get into trouble again.”

His Honour Judge David Herbert KC, sentencing, said: “This was a terrible piece of driving over an extended period of time.

“These are massive speeds. It is very rare the courts come across these speeds.”

He added: “Fortunately for you, the roads at that time were fairly empty so the danger to road users was limited. Had they been busy, what happened would have been a different story.”

Cooper was sentenced to a 12 month community order with a four month electronically monitored curfew. He must undertake 70 hours of unpaid work and attend 10 rehabilitation activity requirement days. He was disqualified from driving for 15 months and must take an extended driving retest.