David O'Toole, 40, of no fixed address, has been jailed for nine months after admitting escaping from lawful custody and possessing class C drugs. He fled from the back of a police car following a crash in Wirral and was on the run for nine months before being located at a caravan park in North Wales.
Crash and arrest
Merseyside Police were called to a crash on St Peter's Way in Noctorum, Wirral, on July 15 last year. They found a red car stopped in the middle of the road with O'Toole and his front seat passenger slumped over inside. When roused, O'Toole was slurring his words and confirmed he had taken a couple of diazepam, according to prosecutor Jonathan Keane. He was arrested on suspicion of drug driving.
During the arrest, a black shoulder bag O'Toole was carrying was found to contain quantities of class C drugs zopiclone and diazepam.
Escape and capture
O'Toole then pulled away from officers and ran off on foot towards Noctorum Avenue. He climbed on top of a bin and over a fence, escaping through the rear gardens of adjoining homes. He ran onto train tracks, prompting British Transport Police to shut the tracks for safety. Police deployed dogs but O'Toole evaded capture.
He was only located on April 23 this year at Henllys Farm Touring and Camping in Towyn, North Wales. Mr Keane noted: "This was not a sophisticated escape. There was no violence or injury suffered. The only relevant factor may be how long the defendant was at large, which was just shy of a year."
Defendant's background
O'Toole has 14 previous convictions for 26 offences, including suspended sentences for supplying class C drugs and breaching a non-molestation order. John Weate, defending, said: "It is a strange set of circumstances. He finds himself before the court on this matter having been before the courts on a number of occasions in the intervening period. There were occasions when he appeared before the court, got a suspended sentence and was then ordered to serve part of that suspended sentence. The defendant was subject to probation supervision. He had a fixed address. He was in police custody on a number of occasions."
Mr Weate added: "The reality is, it was spontaneous. He was, at the time, perhaps under the influence. There was no violence used. There was no preparation. He is optimistic for the future. There are issues relating to his mental health which go back many years. He has been in custody for some time now and he is effectively clean."
Sentencing
O'Toole admitted escaping from lawful custody and possession of zopiclone and diazepam. Appearing via video link to HMP Liverpool, he was jailed for nine months. Sentencing, Judge Garrett Byrne said: "You pulled away and ran off. Police chased you. You crossed some railway tracks. Police had to deploy dogs. British Transport Police had to shut the tracks off to make them safe. You succeeded in your escape and were effectively on the run until April, a period of nine months."
The judge noted: "Clearly, in this case, there was no planning involved. It was an opportunistic and instinctive escape. No violence was offered to the police officers. It is reasonable to assume that some disruption to the railways was caused, and you failed to hand yourself in and were on the run for a substantial period of time." He added: "It is aggravated by two factors. Firstly, you were subject to a suspended sentence at the time of the offending, and, secondly, you do have an extensive criminal record. In terms of mitigation, there is very little of any compelling nature."
