A 23-year-old man with a history of performing burnouts told a magistrate he wasn’t thinking when he spun his tyres down to their rims outside East Maitland Bowling Club.
David Russell Gardner, of Condon Avenue, Cessnock, changed his reckless driving plea of not guilty to guilty after his solicitor withdrew from the matter on Friday.
The court heard that East Maitland residents made several triple-0 calls about 10.45pm on September 17 claiming a car was driving dangerously and performing burnouts in the streets.
Police went to the suburb where they found a large amount of smoke on the New England Highway and on Banks Street.
Police found a Holden Commodore nearby with its front and rear passenger side tyres completely shredded and the rims damaged beyond repair.
Unable to find the driver police spoke to witnesses at East Maitland Bowling Club and obtained CCTV footage that showed the Commodore doing a burnout past the entrance.
Witnesses told police the driver performed another burnout at an intersection of the highway before driving past the club a second time and attempting burnouts when they heard two of his tyres burst.
Court documents said Gardner spoke to police the following day and admitted to being the driver but didn’t provide a reason why he drove recklessly.
“I was never out of control I was just spinning,” Gardner told the magistrate Darryl Pearce in court.
But he agreed that the act was dangerous.
“What would happen if someone came along?” Mr Pearce asked.
“Were you thinking of other people? You were spinning your wheels so violently you took your tyres off their rims. Why would you do this to your own vehicle?”
“What did you think you were on, a speedway or a race track? You’re in a lot of trouble.”
Gardner will be sentence on August 13.
