A magistrate has given a stern warning to a Ballarat man who tested positive for drugs in his system after a head-on crash on Elsworth Street.
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Joshua Higham appeared at the Ballarat Magistrates' Court on Monday to plead guilty to 10 charges including drug driving, driving whilst disqualified and criminal damage.
The court heard at 7.14pm on the night of April 1, 2022, Higham was driving a Ford Laser along Geelong Road in Canadian with a passenger when he decided to turn west onto Elsworth Street.
At this time a woman in a Mercedes Benz was driving east along Elsworth Street, towards Geelong Road.
The court heard Higham, turning west, veered into the wrong lane and crashed into the Mercedes Benz.
The collision caused "significant" damage to both cars, which were both assessed as write-offs.
Higham had to be helped out of the wreckage of his vehicle by a bystander.
Police working in the area arrived at the scene at 7.16pm and assessed the three involved in the crash for injuries.
The female driver of the Mercedes Benz was found to have minor grazing to her hands and knees, likely the result of the car's airbags being deployed.
Higham, who appeared to be alcohol-affected according to police, was bleeding from the head.
The court heard he became increasingly agitated towards the officers on scene, who called state highway patrol officers in for assistance.
Higham was then transported to the Ballarat Base Hospital where a blood sample was collected, which tested positive for cannabis.
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He was given a CT scan, which found he had fractured his neck in the accident.
The court also heard that a police assessment of the crash scene after analysis showed Higham did not try to brake before the crash, from an absence of tyre marks on the road.
Magistrate Letizia Torres read a neuropsychological report tendered to the court by Higham's defence.
"You had a head-on collision in which you could have really hurt - or killed - yourself, or somebody else," Ms Torres said.
Higham was sentenced to a nine-month community corrections order requiring 150 hours of community work.
His licence was also suspended for 20 months.
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