'Morning after' drink driver banned for a year

Editorial Department • Published 12 Jan 2012 13:00

The danger of driving the morning after the night before was highlighted when a 34-year-old man was found to be over the legal alcohol limit at 6am.

Peter Quinn, of Sessiagh East, Innishmore, Lisbellaw, was fined £250 and banned from driving for a year when he appeared at Fermanagh Court and admitted the offence.

Deputy District Judge Paul Conway said people should realise that if they are out drinking they can be over the limit the next morning.

A prosecutor explained that at 6am on November 27, last year, police received a report from a member of the public about a suspected drunken driver. A patrol travelling along the main A4 Enniskillen to Belfast road towards Brookeborough spotted a car with a matching registration coming in the opposite direction. They turned and stopped it at Cooneen. The driver, Quinn, provided a preliminary breath sample which produced an alcohol reading of 72. He was arrested and taken to Enniskillen Police Station where an evidential sample produced an alcohol reading of 60 - 25 in excess of the legal limit.

Defence solicitor, Mr. Gary Smyth, said Quinn had got some sleep just before getting into the car. Deputy District Judge Paul Conway said he would take into consideration the fact that it was a "morning after" offence.

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This article appeared in Impartial Reporter 12 Jan 12

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