It was the second time that Mario Fernando Simoes Reis (54), of Mont Millais, has been prosecuted for the offence and he was warned that if he came back to court again he would almost certainly face a prison sentence.
Outlining the case in the Magistrate’s Court, Centenier Mike Byrne said that at 8.10 pm on 8 November a police officer spotted the defendant driving a Honda in Route du Fort and he appeared to be struggling to control the vehicle.
The officer watched as the car nearly rolled into another vehicle. When the officer pulled the vehicle over, he saw an open bottle of wine on the passenger seat. The driver failed a roadside breath test and was arrested. When breathalysed at police headquarters, he gave a reading of 92 mcg of alcohol in 100 ml of breath. The legal limit is 35 mcg.
Advocate Luke Sette, defending, said Reis had drunk wine with his dinner that evening and had not anticipated working, but was offered a shift and, because his finances were in a dire state, he decided to drive after drinking.
The lawyer said that the open bottle found in the car was ‘off’ and Reis was intent on taking it back to the shop to get a refund.
Advocate Sette said that Reis had been assessed at being at a low risk of reoffending and had stopped drinking since the offence was committed.
The court heard that the defendant does charitable work every Sunday morning and is generally very hard working.
Reis, who admitted drink-driving, was ordered to complete 120 hours of community service and banned from driving for four years.
