A woman has been spared jail after she got behind the wheel while more than six times the legal drink-drive limit – before crashing into a digger.
Rebecca Gill, who spends around £400 a month on alcohol, drove her blue Ford Fiesta carelessly down an unclassified road between Mill of Uras and Stonehaven on March 6.
The 47-year-old was not paying attention to the road when she drove straight into the JCB at around 10.35am.
When officers arrived on scene they suspected Gill had been drinking and a road side breath test showed she had 133 microgrammes of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath. The legal limit is 22mcg.
Gill previously admitted driving carelessly and while over the legal alcohol limit when she appeared at Aberdeen Sheriff Court.
Sentence had been deferred on a number of occasions for background reports to be carried out into her character.
Sheriff Alison Stirling had previously said that she was “seriously considering” imposing a prison sentence on the mum-of-one because of the high level of alcohol in her system.
But yesterday the sheriff gave her another chance after the court heard she had started to receive help for her alcohol addiction.
Representing the first offender yesterday solicitor, Charles Benzies said: “This really was a calamitous piece of driving. To her credit she has recognised she has a problem with alcohol and has taken steps to address that. She is trying to get into a rehabilitation course.
“She is in employment however it is doubtful as to what is going to happen to her job at the conclusion of this case.”
Mr Benzies said that his client suffered collar bone injuries as a result of the crash and said that she realised that “the consequences for other members of the public could have been catastrophic”.
Sentencing Gill, of Slatywaird, Newton of Barras, Stonehaven, Sheriff Stirling said: “It is fortunate that the crash did not involve someone else being injured. Obviously I am extremely concerned about the level of alcohol in your system with which you chose to drive.
“It is six times the main limit. I find that completely unacceptable.”
Gill was disqualified from driving for 32 months and told she could reduce this by six months if she takes part in the drink-drivers rehabilitation scheme. She was also ordered to carry out 200 hours of unpaid work in the community within the next year. However she was warned if she does not completely the hours she would be going to jail as a direct alternative.
She was also fined £800 for her careless driving.