Josh Walker escapes driving ban over tinted windows

May 15 2011 by Sara Nichol, Sunday Sun

FOOTBALL ace Josh Walker has escaped a driving ban after the windows of his sports car were tinted dangerously dark.

The former Boro player was caught driving the flash motor through Newcastle before police stopped him.

Walker, 22, was on Stowell Street in the city’s Chinatown when officers told him he faced an on-the-spot fine and three penalty points.

But four months later he received a letter saying he would have to go to court because it had emerged he already had nine points on his licence for three speeding offences.

Due to the totting-up system, the penalty points added on for the dangerous windows would mean that Walker – who now plays for Watford but is on loan to Northampton – would be banned from the roads for at least six months.

Now, after an initial court hearing last month, a mix-up between police and the DVLA has been unravelled and it was proved Walker only had six points on his licence.

It means Walker, of Berkley Close, Killingworth, North Tyneside, won’t face a driving ban, instead receiving three points and a £75 fine.

His dad Dean Walker last night told of his son’s delight and said he is relieved he won’t have to give him lifts to football training - a commute of more than 300 miles given he is still based in the North.

Dean said: “It was in September last year that he was caught for the windows and he was told he would get a fine and three points.

“Four months down the line and he gets a letter saying he’s been summoned to court because he already had nine points on his licence and the extra three would take him to 12, meaning he would lose his licence.

“It’s now been proved that there was a mix-up somewhere along the line with the police. We knew, as did the DVLA, that he didn’t have nine points, he only had six.

“We’re pleased this has finally been cleared up. It’s a weight lifted off Josh’s shoulders and he can get back to concentrating on his football.

“He’s on loan at the moment but he’s back at Watford in June, which he’s looking forward to. He still lives up here so it would have been a nightmare for him to have to carry all his stuff on long train journeys to get down there.

“It’s also a bit of a long distance for his dad to give him a lift!”

At the initial hearing at Newcastle Magistrates’ Court the case was adjourned for an exceptional hardship hearing while the issue of the penalty points was being cleared up.

Walker played for Middlesbrough from 2006 until he was sold to Watford last year. He was a graduate of Middlesbrough’s productive youth academy along with the likes of Stewart Downing and Adam Johnson.

In January 2009, he started his first game for the club, playing the whole 90 minutes in the 2-1 FA Cup victory against Barrow. He was part of England’s 2009 U-20 World Cup squad, captaining the side in all three of England’s games.