Karl Hutchinson was convicted in the Mandurah Magistrates Court on Friday for dangerously driving an unlicensed vehicle with false plates.
Hutchinson pleaded guilty to three charges over a video link to Casuarina prison, where he is in custody over unrelated charges to be heard in the District Court.
At 1.30am on August 6, 2016, he drove a Jeep Cherokee near Dwellingup which had been unlicensed since February 2010.
The prosecution said that while he drove up a steep hill in an 80 kilometer per hour zone, Hutchinson attempted to overtake a 30 metre long road train at 100 kilometers per hour, though the road was marked with a solid white line.
They said that while overtaking Hutchinson took his eyes off the road to reach for a cigarette lighter in the centre of the car, which caused him to lose control of the vehicle.
After crashing into roadside trees, a front seat passenger incurred severe injuries to his right leg.
Hutchinson told the court: “I did not know the speed was 80 kilometers per hour, I was trying to adhere to the law”.
The judge postponed sentencing to March 28, once Hutchinson’s other charges had been dealt with, so they could be factored in to his sentence.
