After pleading guilty to driving while drunk, Silverchair’s former frontman Daniel Johns could be facing jail-time.
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Currently in rehab, as it was revealed last month, Johns was absent from his Monday court hearing, where his lawyer entered a plea on his behalf. After being charged with high-range drink-driving as a result of a vehicle collision in the Australian New South Wales Hunter region, Johns’ lawyer Bryan Wrench told the local court in Raymond Terrace, that immediate sentencing was preferred, due to the mental toll and anxiety a trial may cause Johns.
Ultimately, the request was denied by magistrate Ian Cheetham, who stated that the offense was too serious in nature, and that in fact, Johns may face a prison sentence, as police reported him to be three times over the legal alcohol limit when his car crossed to the wrong side of the road and crashed into a van.
Cheetham then adjourned the case to continue sentencing on June 22, and reportedly, according to The Guardian, ordered Johns to contact Corrective Services NSW officers sentencing assessment report within a weeks time.
As of now, Johns remains in rehab, which he voluntarily entered following the incident for "self-medicating with alcohol to deal with my PTSD, anxiety and depression.”
As additionally reported by The Guardian, as an attempt to avoid having Johns interviewed by corrective services officers, Wrench filed an extensive report compiled by Johns’ defense team that details information from medical experts and references from Johns’ family and includes a proposed ban on drinking alcohol for Johns’, if it meant avoiding jail.
In the report it describes Johns as a very reclusive person with a complex range of mental health issues, claiming that he had been disparaged in the media before he was even charged. “He’s dealt with the adverse impact of fame he never wanted. He doesn’t like it. His main focus is his mental health,” Wrench told the court.
Taking to Instagram the day after the accident, Johns shared a message about his current status of his mental health at that time, with his more than 100,000 followers, letting them know he would be entering rehab.
“As you know, my mental health is a work in progress. I have good days and bad days but it’s something I always have to manage,” Johns wrote. “Over the last week I began to experience panic attacks. Last night I got lost while driving and I was in an accident. I am OK, everyone is OK. I have to step back now as I’m self-admitting to a rehabilitation centre and I don’t know how long I’ll be there. Appreciate your love and support as always.”
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