A MAN has been jailed for 32 weeks after an incident of dangerous driving on a Bradford petrol station forecourt in which two police officers were injured.

James Trotter, 31, of Watmough Street, Great Horton, Bradford, was at the wheel of a red Audi when he committed the offences at the BP filling station on New Line at 11pm on New Year’s Eve last year.

He pleaded guilty to dangerous driving, criminal damage to two police vehicles and assaulting two police officers who were acting as emergency workers.

Prosecutor Jo Shepherd told Bradford Crown Court yesterday that the police were on the look-out for the Audi that night following an incident in Harrogate in which it had made off from the police and two officers had nearly been driven over.

The vehicle was spotted heading along Carr Road towards Greengates in Bradford and then seen in the jet wash bay at the filing station.

Miss Shepherd said a police officer positioned his marked vehicle close to the Audi’s front bumper to prevent it from moving away.

Trotter, who was standing next to the vehicle and appeared to be about to start washing it, then jumped back into the driver’s seat and reversed at speed into an unmarked police vehicle that was positioned behind the Audi.

The Audi was blocked in and Trotter was detained and placed in the rear of a police vehicle.

The court heard it was then that he kicked out inside the vehicle damaging a door and window.

As a result of the collision, one police officer sustained pain to his neck, shoulders and right wrist and a second officer had aching and slight pain in his lower back and discomfort to his shoulder and neck.

Miss Shepherd said the total damage to the two vehicles was estimated to be more than £4,000.

Trotter told the police he had not been to Harrogate that day and he reversed into the unmarked police vehicle in panic because there were people after him. He rolled back into it after failing to see it in the mirror.

He said he kicked out when he was inside the second vehicle because he was passing out and wanted an ambulance.

Judge Jonathan Rose jailed Trotter for 20 weeks for dangerous driving and 12 weeks to run consecutively for assault on an emergency worker.

He was banned from driving for a total of 22 months.