No Criminal Record, Licence Disqualification or Fine for Mid-Range Drink Driving

Our client is a 65 year old woman who is employed as a clinical researcher for a pharmaceutical company and resides in the South Sydney area of Kensington.

She attended a hotel in Kings Cross on an evening to meet up with her long-time friends, where she planned to have very little alcohol.

In the weeks leading up to the meeting, she had been undergoing back surgery for an injury sustained over a long period of involvement in the sport of rowing.

After consuming three glasses of white wine over several hours, she decided to call it a night.

She did not feel intoxicated and believed she was under the prescribed blood alcohol limit for a fully licensed driver.

She was therefore shocked to register a mid-range blood alcohol reading when subjected to a roadside breath test, which was confirmed when a breath analysis at the police station registered a reading of 0.096, which is also in the mid-range.

Our client has never previously been in trouble with the law, and immediately contacted our office and engaged our services.

Our defence team got to work immediately, guiding her on the preparation of subjective materials including character references and a letter of apology to the court, assisting her to enter a traffic offender program and obtaining medical documentation to support the assertion that it was extremely difficult for her to catch public transport given her condition.

To her great credit, our client obtained these materials in the lead-up to the court date, and her assigned senior lawyer prepared detailed submissions with a view to persuading the magistrate to treat her with lenience.

In court, her lawyer made detailed submissions regarding a range of matters including her specific circumstances, her need for a driver licence as well as the importance that she remain conviction-free.

In the result, the presiding magistrate was persuaded to give her the benefit of a good behaviour bond without recording a conviction against her name. This means she remains conviction-free, is not disqualified from driving and does not receive a fine.