A BRAVE cyclist risked life and limb to stop a dangerous drink driver but the drunken menace dragged him along the road and crashed into a post in Worcester.

Martin Davis admitted dangerous driving and drink driving following the incident in City Walls Road in Worcester but was spared jail at Worcester Crown Court on Thursday.

Miraculously, cyclist Fabio Veracruz suffered only minor injuries after the open car door shut on him when Davis, more than three times the drink drive limit, crashed into a post, showering the Good Samaritan in broken glass.

The terrifying incident happened at 2am on September 5 this year when the furloughed chef, who still has the full support of his employer, got behind the wheel after a night out with friends in the city. Mr Veracruz was commended by Judge Nicolas Cartwright for his courage.

Awarding him compensation, the judge said: “Mr Veracruz, thankfully, was not more seriously injured having done the public spirited thing and put himself at considerable risk to apprehend a dangerous driver.”

The 41-year-old defendant of Ambleside Drive, Warndon, Worcester was spared an immediate jail sentence. He was so drunk he has no memory of the crash. Before it happened Mr Veracruz had knocked on the window, repeatedly shouted 'stop!' and, as a last resort, opened the car door and tried to put the handbrake on.

However, he was ignored by Davis who gave 'no response' and drove off with Mr Veracruz clinging to the car said Alexander Barbour, prosecuting.

Davis drove off faster than Mr Veracruz estimated he could cycle which he judged to be around 20mph as the defendant headed toward St Nicholas Street before hitting the post at the top of Lowesmoor.

His decision to drive was made despite Davis having paid for parking until next morning and having money for a taxi home.

Davis had been out drinking with ‘other friends from the catering and hospitality industry’ said Julia Powell, defending, who described her client’s actions as ‘completely out of character’. She said the dad was now teetotal and in a letter to the court had said he was 'extremely sorry'.

However, Davis decided to drive home despite being ‘vastly over the limit’ said Judge Nicolas Cartwright, sentencing. A later breath test revealed Davis was more than three times the limit with a reading of 118mcg of alcohol per 100ml of breath. The limit is 35mcg.

Judge Cartwright said it was ‘somewhat inexplicable’ that the defendant had come before the court at the age of 41 having never had a previous conviction.

He said: “You were totally incapable. The fact you say you don’t recall anything of this isn’t mitigation – quite the opposite – it’s aggravation.”

Summarising the case, the judge said the defendant turned right out of the car park, heading the wrong way down the dual carriageway section of City Walls Road before the ‘public spirited’ cyclist intervened because ‘you were obviously such a danger’.

“He actually thought you had passed out behind the wheel of the car. In fact you were extremely drunk and probably gave the same outward impression” said the judge.

The cyclist attempted to open the door and put on the handbrake as he tried to stop Davis.

“What you did was to put the car in gear and drive off, travelling in the correct direction but with Mr Veracruz standing on the sill of the car with the door open, supporting himself with one hand on the roof and one on the top of the door.”

He added: “You drove in such a way that the door on your side of the car struck a pole, closing it on Mr Veracruz who thankfully has not suffered much more serious injuries as a result of the door shutting and the glass in the window breaking.”

Mr Veracruz recovered the car keys and threw them onto the ground and told Davis to get out of the car. Davis lay in the road until police arrived.

The judge said his driving was ‘plainly dangerous’ and ‘on top of that you disregarded repeated warnings about your driving from Mr Veracruz’.

If the judge thought that Davis drove into the pole deliberately to shut the door on Mr Veracruz then the outcome of the hearing would be very different indeed, the defendant was told.

The judge, who has to consider the harsher regime in prison due to Covid-19, sentenced Davis to eight months in prison suspended for two years. The defendant was banned from driving for 28 months and must complete an extended driving test before he is able to get his licence back.

Davis must also complete 180 hours of unpaid work and pay £500 compensation to Mr Veracruz, £340 costs and a victim surcharge of £900.