A Narberth man who drove through town drunk, narrowly missing other vehicles along the way, has been banned from driving for 40 months.
Thirty-one-year-old Christopher O’Connell of Coxhill, appeared at Haverfordwest Magistrates Court on Tuesday, after being arrested the previous day for the drink-drive offence.
He also pleaded guilty to driving without a valid insurance policy.
Prosecutor Ellie Morgan told the court that at 2.45 pm on Monday, police received a phone call reporting that Mr. O’Connell’s Vauxhall car had been driven to Narberth town narrowly missing other vehicles.
“A police officer spotted the vehicle parked, then witnessed Mr. O’Connell drive off again in it. He was stopped and gave a positive roadside test,” she explained.
After his arrest, the defendant gave a reading of 95 microgrammes of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath.
The court heard that Mr. O’Connell had one relevant matter on record, as he was banned from driving for 20 months in 2008, for ‘driving causing concern’.
Defence solicitor Mark Layton told the court that his client had longstanding chronic drink problems, and that the probation service had made numerous attempts to try and assist Mr. O’Connell with his alcohol issues.
Magistrates disqualified the defendant from driving for 40 months, and endorsed his licence with six penalty points for the no insurance charge,
Mr. O’Connell was also fined £140 and ordered to pay costs of £85 and a £30 victim surcharge.