A CRIMINAL defence barrister has drawn on his own experiences of the courtroom to write his first legal thriller.

Death by Dangerous is the result of two years of hard work by dad-of-two Olly Jarvis, who has defended countless cases at Warrington Crown Court over the past 20 years.

The 48-year-old, who lives in Handforth, Cheshire, said: "I have defended a lot of death by dangerous driving cases and I was exhausted from doing fatalities week in and week out.

"I thought I needed to take some time off between the cases and do something different so I started writing Death by Dangerous.

"I really wanted to write something reflecting the modern criminal justice system."

Olly, who grew up reading Rumpole of the Bailey books, has covered some of the most notorious cases to have happened in Warrington including an arson attack at Greenalls Brewery.

Olly also defended a man accused of killing six members of the Statham family on the M6 near to Warrington.

He said: "He was acquitted of death by dangerous and convicted of death by careless driving

"But what I remember most about that case was the huge dignity with which the wider family and friends of the deceased conducted themselves when all of this is being played out in court."

It is cases like these which have been impossible to forget for the respected barrister.

He said: "Every defendant is different but the thing about death by dangerous driving cases, which makes them different to other cases, is the fact that most of these defendants are normal people.

“They are normal people who have made a terrible mistake in a moment of indecision while driving and yet the consequences are so massive.

"The atmosphere in court is completely different and you feel the pressure defending these people much more because they are completely out of their comfort zone and the penalty is so high."

Death by Dangerous tells the story of John Anderson, who is one of the north west’s most dedicated and successful prosecution barristers.

His career is going from strength to strength and he is on the verge of becoming Queen’s Counsel.

But the life he once knew suddenly comes crashing down following a fatal road traffic accident.

Death by Dangerous is on sale now.