A MAN accused of leading police on a high-speed pursuit at Telarah before losing control, crashing through two fences and into the front of a house remains in hospital under the guard of corrective services.
Kane Andrews, 20, was represented by barrister Bill Hussey when his matter was mentioned in Newcastle Local Court on Monday.
He did not appear in court via video from his bed at John Hunter Hospital or apply for bail but pleaded not guilty to police pursuit, driving recklessly and driving while disqualified.
Mr Hussey said it was unknown when Mr Andrews - who allegedly tried to flee the crash on foot despite suffering serious spinal injuries - would be transferred from a hospital to a correctional centre. Meanwhile, Mr Andrews' girlfriend, 21-year-old India Orrock, who was a passenger in the car during the pursuit and was also seriously injured, was refused bail in relation to a 2018 incident when she used a car to repeatedly block police who were trying to pursue Mr Andrews.
Orrock, who has not been charged over the Telarah pursuit and crash, had been wanted for more than a year after she failed to appear in court in relation to a number of serious matters, including using an offensive weapon to prevent lawful apprehension. Orrock, who appeared on screen from Silverwater Women's Correctional Centre with a cast on her broken wrist and later limped away on a fractured ankle, was convicted in her absence last year but remained at large until the crash last week.
She will be sentenced on July 6, when Andrews will also re-appear in Newcastle Local Court.
