Court / Banned Ollaberry driver avoids prison term

A MAN from Ollaberry who drove while disqualified and forced an oncoming vehicle onto the roadside verge to avoid collision has been banned from driving for 12 months.

Liam Johnson, of Runnadale, was also put under supervision for 15 months and told to carry out 120 hours of unpaid work over the next 12 months when he appeared at Lerwick Sheriff Court on Wednesday morning.

Johnson had previously pledead guilty to a total of four motoring charges, including driving without insurance and with no MOT, all committed on the single track A970 near the Nortenergy premises at Ollaberry in the morning of 2 May.

Referring to a social enquiry report prepared for Wednesday’s hearing, defence solicitor Tommy Allan told the court that his client had made real progress and asked for Johnson to be spared jail.

Sentencing the 32-year-old, sheriff Ian Cruickshank told Johnson that the community payback order he imposed on him was a direct alternative to a custodial sentence.

A first review of the order will take place in three months.