An Angus motorist shot past police officers trying to warn him as he hurtled towards a slow-moving road convoy.
Blair Watson was uninsured and his driving licence had been revoked for medical reasons when he came across the abnormal load police convoy on the A94.
An officer on foot waved down the 26-year-old but he merely flashed his headlights at the PC, who had to step out the way.
A sergeant further along the road was alerted and made his way onto the carriageway to block the path.
However, Watson pulled onto the grass verge to drive past, leaving only one more police vehicle separating him from the 100-tonne, £6m generator crawling along the carriageway.
He exited the road before reaching it but he was convicted of careless driving when he stood trial and has now been banned from the road.
Ignored officer
Forfar Sheriff Court heard evidence three police officers were escorting the abnormal load between Forfar and Meigle on February 11 last year.
PC Rory Forge, 36, was at the front and had pulled his BMW 5 Series into a junction near Glamis, with the blue lights on, at 10.30pm.
He said, on foot on the road, he heard Watson coming from the Meigle direction before he saw him.
Wearing a long hi-viz coat, he stood on the carriageway and motioned for the VW Polo GTI driver to stop.
He said: “The vehicle flashed its headlights, made no attempt to slow whatsoever and I moved back out of its way so it wouldn’t hit me.”
The PC added if Watson had collided with the generator “he wouldn’t be walking away from it”.
Mounted verge
PC Forge radioed Sergeant David Farr, who was a third of a mile behind and next in the convoy.
The officer pulled onto the opposing carriageway with blue lights activated but Watson again flashed his headlights and pulled onto the grass verge with his nearside wheels and dodged round him.
Watson left the A94 before reaching the third officer, who had been the final vehicle in front of the abnormal load.
His car was found in his driveway the following day.
Not guilty plea
Panel beater Watson, from the nearby hamlet of Kinnettles, said he had been returning home from a friend’s house and denied driving dangerously.
Representing himself at trial, he did not question any of the police officers and chose not to give evidence himself.
He explained he had paperwork which stated he could drive with his doctor’s say-so but could not produce it in court.
“It may have been careless,” Watson said in his closing submission.
He told the court he needed his licence for family reasons and to get to work in Dundee.
Fiscal depute Sam Craib said: “Any careful and competent driver would understand that if there are police officers trying to stop you from trying to drive down a road, there is a very good reason for that.
“The driving up on the verge just goes to demonstrate the accused’s driving fell far below the standard of a careful or competent driver.”
Guilty and banned
Sheriff Ray Small found Watson guilty of driving carelessly at excessive speed, without a licence or insurance.
He was told Watson, who has previous convictions for careless driving in 2017 and 2018, no longer had a driving revocation.
The sheriff said: “I would have thought it was fairly obvious all they wanted you to do was pull over and let a big truck go by.
“I take the view that it is a very serious careless driving – it’s right at the top end.
“Disqualification is totally at my discretion.
“While I appreciate the difficulties, I’d be failing a public duty not to impose disqualification.
“It was perilously close to dangerous driving.
“It should have been patently obvious to you it was not appropriate to continue.”
The sheriff banned Watson for six months and fined him a total of £640.
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