On the evening of September 3, 2016, Patrick McCurley climbed the fence of the Alexander Maconochie Centre and spent the following day avoiding police in a stolen car by driving on the wrong side of Canberra roads, including O'Connor's MacCarthur Street and the Federal Highway.
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At one time, an oncoming car was forced to swerve to avoid him and collided with a police officer on a motorcycle, the ACT Magistrates Court heard.
He eventually crashed and was arrested.
In the court on Wednesday the 28-year-old was sentenced to 36 months in prison, with a two-year non-parole period. Eighteen of those months were for the escape.
McCurley appeared in court in prison blues and handcuffed to a corrections officer, while another officer stood at the door. The man was upset as the magistrate detailed his crimes in court.
He had earlier pleaded guilty to multiple offences, including driving while disqualified, driving an unregistered car, driving an unlicensed car, driving with methamphetamine in his system, aggravated driving, escape, possession of stolen property.
The offences related to several different days. Some were committed while he was on bail, and others while he was on the run, the court heard.
On multiple offences he was also disqualified from driving for more than 16 years, and then until the court orders otherwise, and fined $150, an amount which took into account his limited capacity to pay.
"I appreciate that it is a crushing disqualification period, but he's really lost the right to drive on the road," Special Magistrate Maria Doogan said.
Ms Doogan gave the man some discount for guilty pleas, but noted the strong prosecution case, including DNA evidence and in-car footage of the man's driving.
She noted his limited prospects of rehabilitation, and high risk of reoffending, largely because he had continued to blame drugs for the crimes.
She said he posed a risk to community safety and was somebody who did not respect court orders and did not respect other people's property as was evident in "his smashing up of that woman's car".
He will be eligible for parole in June 2018.
