A police officer said he had just finished a difficult shift of around 13 hours when he was challenged to a street race on the Princes Highway in Nowra just after 7pm on November 16, 2023.
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But the decision to race has cost Thomas Leigh Angilley, 21, of Nowra, $1750 in fines and put him off the road for 12 months after he pleaded guilty in Nowra Local Court to organising or promoting a race between vehicles, and driving recklessly at a dangerous speed or manner.
It could also cost Angilley his job, with NSW Police saying his employment status was under review.
Police evidence presented to the court said Angilley was driving a BMW 340i when he pulled up at the traffic lights on the corner of the Princes Highway and Moss Street, about 7.10pm.
He pulled up beside another BMW, and one of the occupants called out, "Let's race" in a conversation recorded by Angilley's forward and rear facing cameras.
After further discussion the pair set off when the lights changed, with Angilley's car fishtailing down the road for a short distance.
At one stage the cars were less than a metre apart, according to police.
Near the intersection with North Street Angilley lost control of his car which spun several times before hitting a pedestrian barrier, and eventually colliding with a light pole.
The force of the impact ripped two wheels off Angilley's car, and left another barely attached.
Police estimated his speed to be above 100kmh, although Angilley disputed that at the time of the accident.
"I certainly wasn't going over 100," he told police who attended the scene, according to evidence presented to the court.
"My car doesn't go that fast in the wet."
Court documents showed Angilley had been issued his unrestricted car and motorcycle licences just three days before the incident.
A few months earlier he had also taken part in a three-day police driver training course, with subjects including roadcraft, systems of car control, skid correction, vehicle dynamics, driver attitude and behaviour, evasive braking and pursuit driving.
"I understand that due to my employment I should have known better, especially with enforcing the laws," Angilley told the court.
He apologised to "my organisation and the general public", admitting, "What I've done is morally wrong, I've already broken my code of conduct, ethics, and my statement of values."
He said it all came down to "a dumb decision".
"Everyone makes mistakes, at the end of the day I'm only human," Angilley told the court.
Magistrate Lisa Viney said it was "a serious example of this type of offence".
"It was reckless, it was dangerous" - particularly considering the roads were wet at the time, she said, before fining Angilley and disqualifying him from driving.
