A Tandragee man who was found asleep in his car with the ignition whilst over the drink-drive limit has been disqualified for one year.
The 22-year-old, who has held his licence for around a year, had according to his solicitor “learned his lesson” following the incident.
Stephen Glen Haire, 22, of Glebe Hill Manor, pleaded guilty to driving with excess alcohol at Craigavon Magistrates’ Court on Friday.
It was heard that on December 22, at around 7.30am, police received reports of a suspected drink driver on Meadow Lane, Portadown.
Officers arrived to find the defendant asleep in the driver seat of a vehicle with the ignition still on.
Haire was woken up and submitted to a preliminary breath test which resulted in a fail.
Whilst in custody, another sample taken showed the defendant to have 78mg of alcohol in 100ml of breath.
When interviewed, Haire accepted that he had been driving but had then decided to park up.
Defence solicitor Philip Reid stated: “On the night in question Mr Haire had been at a friends house and fallen asleep, he then took the foolish decision to get in the car.
“He has told me explicitly that he has learned his lesson since the incident”.
Court heard that the defendant worked building forklifts and the loss of his licence would have an impact on his employment.
Mr Reid said: “This is a young man with a limited record and he has only been driving for around a year, I would ask that he is certified for the drink driving course.”
Haire was disqualified from driving for 12 months and ordered to pay a fine of £250, along with the offender’s levy of £15, within 10 weeks.
He was certified for the drink driving course which would see his ban reduced to one of nine months if completed.
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