A dangerous driver who reached speeds of 80mph in a 30mph zone has been jailed.
Paul Rudkin was the driver of a blue Mini Cooper which failed to stop for police in Keymer Road, in Burgess Hill.
He was wanted on a warrant for failing to attend court for drug driving.
The 42-year-old drove away at high speed and tried to overtake other vehicles in a dangerous way.
But he hit a puddle and lost control and, Sussex Police said, he was arrested by officers from the Roads Policing Unit and Tactical Firearms Unit.
It was found that he was once again more than 10 times the legal limit for cocaine.
At Crawley Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday 10 April he admitted two counts of drug driving, after an earlier hearing at Brighton Crown Court on Monday 8 January when Rudkin was jailed for 10 months by Recorder James Lofthouse.
Driving at excess speed accounts for one in three collisions in Sussex and is one of the main factors in why people are killed or seriously injured on our roads.
Officers across Sussex Police are currently conducting proactive road safety patrols as part of the “fatal five” campaign this April. Drink and drug driving is one of the main causes in people being killed or seriously injured on our roads.
The other factors are driving at excess speed, not wearing a seat belt, being distracted while driving such as by using a mobile phone, and careless or anti-social driving.
When Rudkin was jailed in January, he had admitted failing to stop, driving without insurance and dangerous driving. He was banned from driving for three years and four months.
Then on Wednesday 10 April he admitted charges two charges linked to drug driving. He was given a further three-year ban and ordered to pay a £32 surcharge and £80 fine.
The court was told that the incident happened at 11.20am on 10 December last year during the annual Sussex Police crackdown on drink and drug driving during the festive period.
Footage showed Rudkin, formerly a landscape gardener, of Bentswood Road, Haywards Heath, drive away from officers.
He narrowly avoided head-on collisions and completed high-risk overtaking on blind bends.
The chase ended when he lost control and crashed into a hedge.
A blood test showed that he had 110 micrograms of cocaine per litre of blood. The legal limit is 10 micrograms. He also tested positive for more than 800 micrograms of a chemical called benzoylecgonine, found in those who have taken cocaine. The legal limit for this chemical is 50 micrograms.
At an earlier hearing at Crawley Magistrates’ Court on 11 December last year, he also admitted drug driving in a separate incident on 12 July last year.
Rudkin was found slumped over the wheel of his vehicle in Jobs Lane, Hickstead. He gave a positive drug wipe test for cocaine.
On that occasion a sample of his blood showed he had 109 micrograms of cocaine per litre of blood.
Investigating officer PC Max Setra, from the Roads Policing Unit, said: “Rudkin’s driving put himself, his passengers and other road users at risk.
“He was highly fortunate not to cause a head-on collision as he reached high speeds in Burgess Hill.
“We are pleased with the outcome of the case. It demonstrates our determination to catch offenders and take dangerous drivers off our roads.”
