A 20-year-old with an “extraordinary” 50-page long criminal record who led police on a dangerous high-speed car chase has been jailed for nine months.
Brandon Marshall was clocked by officers driving with his passenger door open, but when cops moved to stop him the serial offender sped off.
Marshall ran three red lights in an “appalling piece of driving” during a terrifying eight-minute pursuit through Leicester at around 3.15am on August 21.
Astonishingly, when he was eventually stopped the lowlife jumped in the back of the Ford Fiesta next to three passengers and said: “I wasn’t driving”.
Marshall, of Westcotes, Leicester admitted dangerous driving, failing to stop and driving without insurance at Leicester Magistrates Court on September 14.
Appearing via video-link at Leicester Crown Court the serial offender was jailed for nine months on Friday (14/10).
Judge Nicholas Dean told Marshall: “You’ve already accumulated a record of convictions that stretches to 50 pages, which is extraordinary for a man of your youth.
“The dangerous driving was an appalling piece of driving that put the lives of many people at risk.
“It’s fortuitous no one was injured or killed. It has to be an immediate sentence of detention.”
Marshall has offended so many times he was barred from most of central Leicester when he was 18 and police spread posters of him through the city.
He was spotted by police at 3.15am on August 21 this year driving along Braunstone Lane towards Narborough Road with three pals in his dark Ford Fiesta.
When cops spotted his door was open and put on blue flashing lights, prosecutor Kate Plummer said: “The defendant sped up and the officer began pursuit”.
Having turned onto the city-bound Narborough Road, Marshall made a left turn into Fullhurst Avenue, jumping a red light.
As the police caught up with him he did a U-turn at a junction and sped back onto city-bound Narborough Road.
He then looped around rounds, jumped a second red light, before heading onto the county-bound lane of Narborough Road.
Marshall sped onto a dual carriageway and other police cars joined the pursuit – twice attempting a “three car box”, but failing.
Marshall went over a grass verge and across another red light before speeding past Braunstone Police Station.
He eventually brought the car to a halt outside a home in Braunstone Lane and jumped into the back seat of the car.
When police arrived he said, “I wasn’t driving,” and during police interview he made no comment.
Marshall was also banned from driving for 18 months and will have to retake his driving test.
Sarah Cornish, defending, said her client had spent his childhood in care but that he had recently been given a new home by the city council and hoped to begin a mechanic’s course at college.
Ms Cornish added: “Thankfully there were no injuries, there was no damage and it took place in the early hours of the morning when traffic was light.”
