Telford drink driver pulled over on way home to see distressed relative while three times the limit sentenced
He had tried and failed to get a taxi first, a court heard
A man attempting to drive home while more than three times the drink-drive limit to comfort a distressed relative was pulled over by police who saw him swerving across a Telford road.
Officers on patrol saw Lewis Sloan’s Volkswagen Passat swerve across the central markings in Holly Road shortly after midnight on May 16, Telford Magistrates Court heard on Thursday (June 4).
Sloan, of nearby Fylingdales Drive in Doseley, had driven from his girlfriend’s home in Redhill after receiving a phone call from an upset family member, the court heard.
Prosecutor Shakeel Ahmed said the police pulled the Passat over and noticed Sloan was unsteady on his feet. He complied with a breath test and the lowest reading was 122 micrograms of alcohol per 100 millilitres of breath; the drink-drive limit is 35mcg per 100ml.
Mitigating for Sloan, Mike Surzyn admitted the reading was “pretty high”.
He said Sloan had been drinking at his girlfriend’s home on the night and had not intended to drive before he received a phone call from a family member who was “upset and distressed” following the recent death of a relative.
Following the phone call he unsuccessfully attempted to get a taxi home to see them, before making the decision to drive himself.
“If you drink you don’t think about the risks,” Mr Surzyn said.
The court heard the 26-year-old had given up his job as a water hygiene technician in the knowledge he would lose his licence following his guilty plea.
Probation officer Phil Kaleta, who assessed Sloan, described him as a “polite young man” who “has made that stupid decision while under the influence of alcohol”.
The magistrates handed down a community order with the requirement Sloan complete 200 hours of unpaid work.
They also banned him from driving for 30 months, although that can be reduced by 30 weeks if he completes a drink-drive rehabilitation course.