A REDDITCH man who had hopes of training in medicine put lives at risk when he led police on a chase through the town at speeds up to 75mph, Worcester Crown Court heard.

23-year-old Christopher Teague, of Lime Tree Crescent – formerly known as Christopher Simmonds - then refused to provide a breath specimen to police when he was eventually caught.

Teague was jailed for nine months, banned from driving for two years and ordered to pay a £100 victim impact surcharge after admitting dangerous driving and refusing to take the breath test.

Peter Grice, prosecuting, said police on duty in an unmarked car in Coldfield Drive, Redditch, noticed a BMW 3 Series approaching at speed from behind at 2am on September 11.

The vehicle overtook the police car and the officers followed it into Patch Lane, where it accelerated hard, went through a series of bends and made no attempt to stop at the junction with Rough Hill Drive.

In Oakenshaw Road,Teague increased his speed to 65 to 70mph, going up to 75mph in a 40mph zone.

Mr Grice said the pursuit continued along Coldfield Drive, where Teague clipped the kerb before going the wrong way around an island.

Teague drew up on the B&Q car park, where he abandoned the vehicle and the pursuit continued on foot.

When they stopped him, police noticed he smelled of an intoxicating substance and was unsteady on his feet.

Siobhan Collins, defending, said Teague completed a large number of GCSEs before studying A levels in chemistry, biology, physics and maths and had gained a place to study medicine at Birmingham University.

But his “bright future” went wrong at the age of 18, when he ended up wounding someone after a night out with friends and he was given 18 months in a young offenders institution, losing his university place, his friends, “his ambition and hope”.

After being released from custody, he cared for his sick mother, but he struggled and turned to alcohol to support him.

On the night of the dangerous driving incident, he had discovered the man he had been brought up to see as his father was not his parent.

She added that, despite his setbacks, Teague was now doing a biology degree in the hope of bettering himself.

Judge Robert Juckes QC told Teague he was a young man of “real potential” but his driving had put lives at risk because of the speeds he was doing.

“If your mother had seen someone driving like that, her reaction would be that person should go to prison,” added the judge.