Driver drank five pints to cure hangover

Chris Donegan • Published 12 Jan 2012 16:30

A 34-year-old driver had five pints as "the cure" for his Christmas party hangover and was over twice the legal alcohol limit when stopped by the police.

Colm Kelly, of Highgrove, Farranasculloge, Lisnaskea, appeared at Fermanagh Court and admitted speeding and driving with excess alcohol.

Kelly, who has a previous conviction for a drinking and driving offence in 2009, was fined £500 and banned from driving for three years.

A prosecutor told the court that just before 4.30pm on December 18, 2011, police detected Kelly travelling at 50mph within a 30mph speed limit at Moorlough Road, Newtownbutler. On stopping him they detected the smell of alcohol and he admitted he had been drinking earlier in the day.

Kelly told police: "I was getting the cure. I have had about five pints today."

A sample of his breath produced an alcohol reading of 88 - more than twice the legal limit of 35.

Defence barrister, Miss Heather Philips, said Kelly had been at a work's party in the Manor House Hotel the night before that gone on into the early hours of the morning. He had a number of drinks after midnight and had been transported home. He then received a call for help from a friend whose cattle had escaped. It was while he was on his way back from his friend's that he was stopped by the police.

District Judge Liam McNally referred to new sentencing guidelines indicating that the penalty should be increased in drinking and driving cases where the reading is over 70, as it was in this instance.

Miss Philips said it was not as if Kelly had a drink that day, it was "over-spill" from the night before.

The District Judge said he had taken the guidelines into account in passing sentence.

He told Kelly: "It was a high reading where you obviously had a high level of alcohol consumed."

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