A 21-YEAR-OLD man used his car as a weapon to try to force a couple's vehicle off the highway in a road rage incident, a court heard last week.

Liverpool Crown Court was told that the incident began outside McDonalds at the Bromborough Retail Park where John Firth, of Rochester Road, Rock Ferry, had been driving the Ford Escort RS2 Turbo at speed around the car park.

Judge Elizabeth Steele told Firth: "Your behaviour, which caused acute distress to the woman driver of the car, could so easily have resulted in disastrous consequences, serious injury and considerable damage to the cars.

"You were lucky that it did not. This was road rage gone mad."

She said his behaviour fully justified a custodial sentence but this was a last chance for him.

The court heard that on December 27 Lisa Stead-James and her boyfriend, Andrew Eccles, left McDonalds and heard the screeching of tyres. The passenger in Firth's car shouted at Mr Eccles in an aggressive manner, said Mr John Dixon, prosecuting.

The couple got into their car and began to drive off, but were pursued by Firth, who pulled up level with them as they slowed down at the exit.

Firth's passenger got out and threatened Mr Eccles and then Firth got out, threatened Miss Stead-James, pulled off the rear windscreen wiper and tried to open the passenger door, where Mr Eccles was sitting.

The threats continued as Miss Stead-Jones drove off and the pursuit carried on, with Firth's vehicle appearing to try to ram the couple off the road, said Mr Dixon.

There were a number of collisions as Firth veered in towards the Ford Fiesta, which swerved to avoid him.

The incident ended with Firth pulling in front of the couple, who slowed down, and Firth sped off.

The later stages of the ordeal were witnessed by an off-duty police officer who saw Miss Stead-James, an asthmatic, crying uncontrollably as she was hyperventilating.

Four days later Firth was stopped by that officer on New Chester Road with a baseball bat on the passenger seat, which he said belonged to the man who had been with him during the other incident.

When interviewed, Firth claimed there had been an unhappy confrontation outside McDonalds in which abuse had been directed at him and he admitted trying to force them off the road to get one over on them, said Mr Dixon.

Firth said he had been 'hot' and his friend 'red hot' with anger, he added.

Mr Gordon Bellis, defending, said that 'contrition, regret and shame' poured out of Firth when he was interviewed by police. He had fallen under the influence of his co-accused, who is still at large, he said.

Firth pleaded guilty to dangerous driving, affray, criminal damage and having an offensive weapon.

He was ordered to complete 100 hours' community service, placed on probation for two years, ordered to pay £487 compensation for the damage to the other car, £76 prosecution costs and banned from driving for 12 months.

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