Dangerous driver crashed into mother and baby

A dangerous driver who crashed head-on into a mother travelling with her two-month-old baby has been banned from driving and handed a suspended jail sentence.

John Phillips, 47, hit the mother and baby in a BMW after a police pursuit that started on the A514 Scaddows Lane in Ticknall, Derbyshire, on 21 November 2025.

After the crash, Phillips drove off but was stopped by a stinger device and arrested.

Appearing at Southern Derbyshire Magistrates' Court on Monday, he pleaded guilty to four offences and was given a 12-month prison sentence, suspended for 18 months, and a 29-month driving ban.

The court heard concerned members of the public rang the force at about 17:30 GMT to report the way the Range Rover was being driven.

The 4X4 caused a police car travelling in the opposite direction to brake suddenly and swerve out of the way. The officer immediately turned and pursued the Range Rover.

Phillips, of High Street, Repton, Derbyshire, ignored the police car's blue flashing lights and sirens and repeatedly swerved into the path of oncoming traffic - "driving erratically between 10mph and 25mph".

After a short pursuit, he hit the BMW, leaving mother and baby with minor injuries that were treated in hospital.

Police then tried to smash the driver's window of the Range Rover to apprehend him, but he drove off from the scene.

Officers resumed the pursuit and he was eventually stopped in his tracks by the stinger device.

Police said he refused to provide a specimen of breath before he was taken into custody.

Phillips pleaded guilty to dangerous driving, failing to stop, failing to provide a sample of breath and failing to stop after a collision.

Alongside his suspended sentence and driving ban, Phillips must pass an extended driving test, carry out 150 hours of unpaid work, pay £85 in costs, a £187 victim surcharge and an alcohol-abstinence requirement.

Follow BBC Derby on Facebook, on X, or on Instagram. Send your story ideas to [email protected] or via WhatsApp on 0808 100 2210.