‘Drunken state'

Press, 9 June 1978, Page 5

‘Drunken state'

A motor-cyclist crashed 1 1 'into a give-way sign and a later fell into bushes at the c Bishopdale roundabout when; [he attempted to pass a van, ;t Mr F. J. Paterson, S.M.,|* was told in the Magistrates;! ! Court yesterday. ' The Magistrate convicted Owen John Swann, aged 24, j of driving on Harewood I Road while his blood-alcohol; j (level exceeded the legal ( limit. j Swann denied the charge. l “The offence is that you i dared to drive a vehicle in this drunken state," said the Magistrate. I After telling Swann that he “came to grief in circum-, stances which aroused the, greatest suspicion,” he fined ■ him $2OO and disqualified him from driving for 11 months. The defence alleged that|

the time limit for taking the alcohol test had been exceeded. The Magistrate dismissed this, saying that the “authorised persons had used the correct procedures” for the test. Swann had a blood alcohol level of 191 mg. Traffic Officer A. W. Ruatahi said that he saw a motor-cycle lying in the .centre of the Bishopdale roundabout at 10.30 p.m. on February 2. He then saw the defendant lying in bushes. Swan reac led slowly to questions and his eyes were glazed, he said. The defendant later told him that he had drunk two jugs of beer in a Christchurch hotel about half an lhour before the accident.