Client Avoids Prison after Driving a Stolen Vehicle

Case study summary

Our 18-year-old client pleaded guilty to driving a stolen vehicle without a licence or insurance and possession of cannabis. We represented him at his sentence hearing and persuaded the court to impose a community order rather than a prison sentence.

Case study

Our client was 18-years-old. In April 2023, he was charged with driving a stolen vehicle, driving without a licence, driving without insurance and possession of cannabis.

Our client asked us to represent him at the Magistrates' Court, after we represented him as the duty solicitor at his police interview, because he was pleased with the advice and support which he had received at the police station. He admitted the allegation and explained that he knew the car was stolen but he did not know who had stolen it or where it had been stolen from. He was not insured to drive the car and did not have a licence. He confirmed that the cannabis was for personal use.

We instructed one of our expert criminal defence solicitors to represent our client at court. We highlighted our client's previous good character and the fact that he had only turned 18 a few weeks before the offending. He was attempting to pass his theory test and thought purchasing and driving a car would help with this but he had since realised the seriousness of his offending and he was remorseful for his actions.

We persuaded the court to impose a 12-month community order and 6 points on his licence rather than disqualifying our young client. He was relieved with the outcome and looked forward to continuing to work towards passing his driving theory and practical tests.