A drink-driving offshore worker was “grassed in” to the police by his own car after he crashed it in Aberdeen, his lawyer told a court.
Nicholas Donald, 35, appeared in the dock at Aberdeen Sheriff Court where he admitted being three times the drink-drive limit while behind the wheel of his fancy Mercedes-Benz utility vehicle.
Donald crashed his car in the Garthdee area of the city during the early hours of the morning.
His top-of-the-range SUV then called the police to report the crash, unaware that its owner was too drunk to drive.
Police found Nicholas Donald unsteady on his feet after crash
Fiscal depute Eilidh Gunn told the court that around 1am on April 20 this year, Donald was driving his red Mercedes-Benz GLA 300 along Pitmedden Road, Aberdeen, when he lost control of his vehicle.
“The crash was detected by the vehicle itself, which contacted the police,” Ms Gunn said.
Police officers attended the scene where they found Donald and identified him as the driver.
After noticing that he was unsteady on his feet, they carried out a roadside breath test, which gave a positive result for alcohol.
When breathalysed, Donald gave a reading of 66mcg of alcohol in 100ml of breath. The legal limit is just 22mcg.
In the dock, Donald pled guilty to one charge of being in charge of a motor vehicle while over the legal alcohol limit to drive.
‘The car contacted police – he was grassed in by his car’
Defence solicitor Graham Morrison told the court that his client had been at a funeral on the day in question and had been drinking all day.
“When he returned home, an argument broke out between Mr Donald and his partner,” Mr Morrison said.
“He then took the car out to put some distance between them. It was the car that contacted the police – he was grassed in by his car, essentially.”
Sheriff Gordon Fleetwood then asked Mr Morrison what kind of car could contact the police on the driver’s behalf.
The solicitor replied that it was a Mercedes-Benz GLA 300.
“I’m going to get myself one of them,” the sheriff joked.
Turning back to the serious matter, Sheriff Fleetwood told Donald, of Goval Terrace, Forglen, Aberdeen, that he was disqualified from driving for 12 months.
Donald was also ordered to pay a fine of £640.
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