News / Extreme drink driving
A SHETLAND man who admitted driving while four times the legal alcohol limit has been warned he could be sent to jail.
Lerwick Sheriff Court heard on Wednesday that 37 year old John Andrew Johnson, of Garth, Castle Street, Scalloway, was stopped on the village’s Main Street on 22 August.
Only two weeks after this offence he was in court for driving while almost five times the alcohol limit where procurator fiscal Duncan Mackenzie said he drank three litres of vodka a day.
On Wednesday Mackenzie said: “This is a man with a significant addiction to alcohol who has effectively ruined his life…I am told he has been alcohol free for at least a month, but I have no confirmation whether he has been able to maintain that.”
Defence agent Tommy Allan pointed out that Johnson had not yet been banned from driving when he was arrested for the second time, and therefore should not be taken into account as a previous conviction.
However Sheriff Philip Mann said that with such a massive reading he would have to consider a custodial sentence and deferred sentence for one month for social work reports to be compiled.
At the other extreme, David Smith, of Ucluelet, Setter, Sandwick, was banned from driving for one year and fined £400 after he admitted being over the legal alcohol limit by the smallest possible margin.
When the 25 year old gave a blood sample to police after his arrest on Lerwick Commercial Street on 29 July this year he had 81 milligrammes of alcohol on 100 millilitres of blood, just one milligramme above the legal amount.
Sheriff Mann said: “Clearly you took a chance and it didn’t pay off.”
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