A student nurse caught driving while four times over the legal limit after a boozy baby shower has been banned from the road.
Witnesses spotted Shantell Rebecca Sutherland on an ill-advised night drive in Fraserburgh on August 19.
It was clear to everyone that saw her that she was struggling to drive her vehicle, with her white Audi A3 swerving around the road.
Another clear indication of her condition was given by the fact that she had neglected to switch on her lights.
Police were called and they soon stopped the 27-year-old, who gave a positive breath test at the roadside. She was found to have 112 microgrammes of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath. The limit is just 22mg.
Sutherland, of Dundarg Road in Rosehearty, appeared at Peterhead Sheriff Court yesterday to admit to being behind the wheel on Arisaig Drive and Buchan Road, Fraserburgh on August 19.
Fiscal depute Katie Murray told the court: “Witnesses observed a white vehicle without any lights on. It was swerving in the road.
“Witnesses formed the opinion the female driver was under the influence of alcohol and they decided to contact the police.
“When officers arrived they noticed she was unsteady on her feet, her speech was slurred and her eyes were glazed.
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“They carried out the breathalyser procedure and it returned a positive result.”
Defence agent Marianne Milligan told the court Sutherland had been attending a celebration for one of her pregnant friends.
She said her client was “mortified” about her appearance in the dock.
Mrs Milligan said: “It had been a holiday weekend and she attended a friend’s baby shower.
“She decided to take her car there and intended to take a taxi home, but she couldn’t get a taxi.
“She is a student nurse and is in her second year at Robert Gordon University. She is mortified about being in court.
“A driving ban would mean that both her work and studies would suffer.”
Sheriff Christine McCrossan, however, said she was “obliged” to ban the accused from the roads.
She disqualified Sutherland from driving for 18 months and fined her £500.
