Rudolph Cornelius Speer: Man fined for falling asleep and crashing into power pole on Crossman Road in Ranford

A man who fell asleep at the wheel and crashed an unlicensed vehicle into a power pole, causing it to split and fall on the road, has been fined $1500. Rudolph Cornelius Speer was sentenced in Narrogin Magistrates Court on Tuesday having entered an endorsed plea of guilty to careless driving, driving a vehicle with false number plates, and driving an unlicensed vehicle on December 12. Police prosecutor Sgt Natalie Parker told the court the 65-year-old was driving a Mazda on Crossman Road in Ranford, 3km from Boddington, at 11.06pm on October 18 when he fell asleep and drove off the road. The vehicle crashed into a power pole at 70km/h, knocking it down and causing part of it to fall on the road. Police attended the scene and discovered the plates on the Mazda had expired in 2001 and belonged to a different vehicle owned by Speer. Speer was absent from his appearance and not represented by a lawyer. He was fined $1300 plus $212.05 for the half annual licence fee and $300.50 in costs.