News / Six times the drink driving limit
A FISHERMAN who drove with his young son as a passenger while six times the drink-driving limit has been banned from the road for 32 months and fined £1,000.
Lerwick Sheriff Court heard on Wednesday that 44-year old Ewan Anderson, of North Road, Lerwick, drove a car on the A970 near the Nesting junction on 26 August with 135 micro grammes of alcohol in 100ml of breath.
Procurator fiscal Duncan Mackenzie told the court that police were tipped off by a member of the public who was concerned by Anderson’s driving.
They traced his vehicle and followed him before Anderson stopped and stumbled out of the car.
He was unable to walk in a straight line, Mackenzie said, and failed a roadside screening test. Anderson was arrested and then taken to the police station.
Mackenzie said the fisherman, who had a “significant alcohol problem”, had his 11 year old son in the car at the time.
Defence agent Tommy Allan said his client had separated from his wife and had taken to the bottle to cope with the split.
After the incident he was taken to hospital and given a detox. He hadn’t had a drink since late August, Allan said.
Sheriff Philip Mann described Anderson’s behaviour as “extremely reckless”.
Anderson can reduce his disqualification by one quarter if he completes a drink-driving rehab course.
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