Lara Bingle leaves Waverly Court after pleading guilty to a driving charge. Picture: John Grainger Source: The Daily Telegraph
LARA Bingle - model, reality TV personality and wayward driver - will be forced to spend a year off the road for her repeated indiscretions behind the wheel.
The 25-year-old, whose reality TV show Being Lara Bingle was recently axed after only one season, sat with her head down and arms crossed at her waist in the front row of Waverley Court this morning.
The court heard Bingle had been booked for speeding six times this year alone and was already banned from driving when she was involved in a crash with motorcyclist Nicki Vinnicombe in May.
She had been driving her black Range Rover in the back streets of Bondi Beach when she had the accident - before leaving the scene without giving the injured motorcyclist her details.
Magistrate Robbie Williams warned the model she was facing a possible jail sentence for ignoring her license ban and said her record of traffic offences suggested she didn't obey the road rules.
"I think you should by now realise how serious this offence is," he said.
"The facts are concerning in a number of ways - certainly the court has to be concerned with the fact that there was a collision and you left the scene.
"There was no doubt you were aware that your license was suspended."
Bingle - who appeared in court wearing a sober, black skirt and high-necked white blouse - faced sentencing today after pleading guilty to the offences.
Her lawyer Murugan Thangaraj SC said Bingle had voluntarily stopped driving since the crash, even though her license was returned in July.
She had also gone to the police station the day after the accident to give her details - despite not knowing if anyone had taken the registration from her car, he said.
"There has been significant charity work that she's undertaken over the years ... there are many examples of her giving to the community," he said.
Mr Williams said Bingle didn't deserve to go to jail - but he handed her an 18-month, good-behaviour bond and $3500 in fines on top of a one-year driving ban.
"If you are to commit any serious traffic offences or criminal offences, that bond will be looked at," he warned the model.
Bingle didn't speak throughout the sentencing and was quickly whisked away in a black Jaguar after leaving the courthouse.
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