An angry car driver sped off with a terrified man clinging to the roof when impatience led to a road rage incident, a court heard.

Lee Smith's Mazda MX5 convertible travelled about 60ft before Kevin Greenwell leapt off and suffered serious injuries.

The victim lay on the road for about two hours before being taken to hospital with fractures to his left wrist and his right foot, and swelling and bruising to the right side of his body.

Smith, of Freelands Road, Strood, denied causing serious injury by dangerous driving, but was convicted by a jury.

The 56-year-old former IT worker was jailed for two years - despite a judge saying the victim had behaved "extremely foolishly" during the incident.

Smith, who has no previous convictions, was banned from driving for three years and will have to take an extended test before he is allowed back on the road.

Mr Greenwell and his wife had been to the cinema in Rochester on October 25 last year and were leaving at about 7pm when he noticed a car driving so closely behind he could not see his headlights, Maidstone Crown Court was told.

Prosecutor Edmund Fowler said the Mazda shot past on the brow of a hill and pulled over quickly, causing Mr Greenwell to brake and swerve to avoid a collision.

“His erratic driving didn’t stop there,” said Mr Fowler.

“He drove ahead breaking sharply and accelerating all the way to the roundabout to the M2.

“Mr Greenwell entered the roundabout intending to go onto the M2, but he felt the defendant was trying to force him over to the other side of the roundabout.”

He followed Smith, 56, along Cuxton Road. Smith stopped and Mr Greenwell got out of his car and went to speak to him.

“He was angry - he accepts that,” said Mr Fowler.

“As he got closer, he saw the MX5 pull out. He thought it would go around him. Instead, the defendant drove straight at him.

“Realising it was not going to stop, he jumped up to avoid injury to his legs and put his palms on the bonnet of the car to protect himself.

"You are very fortunate he was not killed and you were not charged with a much more serious offence" - Judge Martin Joy

“The car accelerated, moving him onto the windscreen and onto the roof. He was clinging to the roof, trying to hang on. The car continued to accelerate along the A228.”

Mr Greenwell decided to leap off where he thought it was safe to do so. Another driver saw him roll onto the road. Smith drove off.

One witness described it as "like watching a film".

Smith claimed he was not driving dangerously or without due care and said he acted out of duress.

He claimed he was threatened by Mr Greenwell, making him terrified, compelling him to act in the way he did.

Judge Martin Joy said Smith had been convicted on overwhelming evidence.

“You obviously became very impatient as you left the cinema that evening and decided for one reason or another to vent that impatience at the victim,” he said.

“Mr Greenwell undoubtedly behaved extremely foolishly and followed you in a foolish way by flashing his lights at you. You behaved foolishly by braking and accelerating.

“He managed to get in front of you by overtaking in a very unwise way. He followed you. You stopped so that all the traffic behind you had to stop at a busy time.

“He walked towards your vehicle. There is no doubt he behaved very impatiently, very stupidly.

“You were in a place of safety. One way or another he went onto your bonnet.

"You then accelerated when he was on your car. You put your speed at about 30mph when he came off.

“As a result, he was badly injured. You are very fortunate he was not killed and you were not charged with a much more serious offence.”

The judge accepted the offence was completely out of character and said Smith “must have seen a red mist”. Character witnesses spoke of his gentle nature.

But he added: “Clearly, that evening you behaved in an utterly reprehensible and dangerous way. Plainly, driving like that causes devastating harm.

“The public has an interest in a case such as this - an interest in deterrence.”