A north-east man has been banned from driving for almost three years after being caught nearly five times over the legal limit.
John Shields appeared at Aberdeen Sheriff Court yesterday where he admitted to driving his vehicle while drunk on Burn Lane in Inverurie.
The court heard the 40-year-old left his friend’s birthday party at 3am in the morning on Sunday, March 12, when he saw a “ruckus” taking place among several people in front of his car.
He then got into the vehicle and drove it to a nearby car park.
Shields, whose address was given as Beverly Road in Inverurie, was subsequently spotted by police and was asked whether he had recently left the vehicle.
He was breathalysed and found to have 104 micrograms in 100 millimetres of alcohol, which is almost five times the legal limit of 22 micrograms.
He pled guilty at the first opportunity.
Representing Shields, defence solicitor Jennifer Pritchard, said: “He had been in a public house celebrating a friend’s birthday party.
“When he came out, he saw a ruckus developing in front of his car.
“He made the stupid decision to move the car because of concerns it would be damaged.
“He moved it 150 metres (492 ft) around the corner into a nearby car park.”
She added that losing his licence would have a devastating impact on her client.
She said: “He works as a welder and has no other way of getting to work and does not know of anyone who could pick him up and drop him off.
“His wife works part time, but this is not sufficient for the family.
“He is likely to lose his home and his job if he loses his licence.
“He has four children, one of who has a medical condition which means they can’t walk very far and Mr Shields has to take him to hospital.”
Sheriff Malcolm Garden said: “You were [more than] four times over the drink driving limit.
“The court does take account of the circumstances in which it happened.”
He was fined £640 and banned from driving for 20 months.
