An Aberdeen primary headteacher has been convicted of causing a serious car crash while nearly five times the drink-drive limit.
Anna Royle, headteacher of Greenbrae Primary School in Bridge of Don, was found guilty of ploughing her Audi Q2 into another vehicle before fleeing the crash scene.
Following the trial at Aberdeen Sheriff Court, it was revealed this is 45-year-old Royle’s second drink-driving conviction after she was caught in 2019.
The court heard how the headmistress fled the crash site with her dog in her arms and was found by police in a lane close by.
She was convicted of one charge of drink-driving and a further charge of leaving the scene of an accident.
Aberdeen City Council today refused to say whether Royle is still the head teacher at the school, although her name still appears on its website.
Royle was ‘hostile’ to police
During the trial, witness Paul Bate, 55, told the court how he was walking home from the supermarket at 9.30pm on October 1 last year when he heard “a massive screech” and what sounded like two cars colliding on Broomhill Road.
He arrived to find a woman behind the wheel of a red Audi Q2, which had smashed into a black Volvo and sustained significant damage to its front.
He said Royle appeared “dazed” before she got out of the car with her dog and “walked off”.
However, at a subsequent identity parade, Mr Bate was unable to say with certainty that Royle was the woman behind the wheel.
Pc Marc Davidson then took to the witness stand where he told fiscal depute Andrew McMann that, after being given a description of the woman, he had located Royle and the dog in a lane behind Broomhill Primary School.
The officer described Royle’s attitude towards the police as “hostile” and said she was “disinterested” and initially refused to take part in a roadside breath test – however, she did ultimately gave a positive result.
Pc Davidson described Royle as “quite argumentative” as he cautioned and arrested her.
When tested again back at Kittybrewster Police Station, Royle gave a reading of 104 microgrammes of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath. The legal limit is 22mg.
A third witness, Pc Connor Hodge, stated that Royle was “clearly intoxicated” and “uncooperative” but eventually admitted to being behind the wheel at the time of the crash.
He said they had to repeatedly ask her who was driving the vehicle before she finally replied “me”.
During final speeches, Mr McMann pointed out that Royle had identified “herself as the driver at the material time and as the driver while she was intoxicated”.
He described there being a “conjunction of testimony” to convict Royle of both charges.
Aberdeen headteacher has previous drink-driving conviction
Defence solicitor John McLeod told the court that, following the accident, his client was approached by police “about 150 metres or so” from the crash site.
He added: “No one identified her at the scene and the eyewitness didn’t pick her out of the identity parade – there’s ample room for doubt.”
Upon reaching a verdict, Sheriff Christian Marney told Royle that he found the witnesses’ accounts of that night “reliable and credible”.
“I’m satisfied beyond a reasonable doubt that the accused was the driver of the vehicle,” he said.
Sheriff Marney then returned a verdict of guilty on both charges.
After the verdict was handed down it was revealed that Royle has a previous drink-driving conviction from 2019.
Describing that as a “matter of concern”, the sheriff deferred sentence on Royle, of Duthie Terrace, Aberdeen, until next month for a criminal justice social work report and a restriction of liberty order assessment to be carried out.
He also banned Royle from driving in the interim period.
Council’s silence over shamed teacher
The Press and Journal put a number of questions about the case to Royle’s employer, Aberdeen City Council, but they declined to answer any of them.
The local authority refused to reveal:
- The status of Royle’s employment as head teacher at Greenbrae Primary
- What – if any – disciplinary action was taken following Royle’s first conviction for drink-driving in 2019
- Whether Royle’s bosses were aware of that previous conviction
An Aberdeen City Council spokesperson would only say: “We do not comment on individual staffing matters.
“The findings of any court case involving an Aberdeen City Council employee would be subject to review and thereafter standard employment procedures.”
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