A man described as a well-respected member of the Alexandra community was yesterday sentenced to 13 months in jail for drink-driving twice within a fortnight.
The breath-alcohol levels of John Vincent Good (68), surveyor, were "extreme and dangerously high" Judge Stephen O'Driscoll said when sentencing the defendant in the Alexandra District Court.
Good admitted driving with a breath-alcohol level of 1480mcg on September 5, and 1120mcg on September 17, and driving while suspended on the latter date, all at Alexandra.
Counsel Justine Baird admitted it was "optimistic" to ask for the penalty to be home detention.
She said Good had been a well-respected member of the community, serving on several community groups.
He was an alcoholic and realised he needed to address that issue.
Spending time in prison while on remand was a shock for him and he was committed to seeking help to stop drinking, she said.
Judge O'Driscoll said Good had two previous drink-driving convictions, 1133mcg in 2001 and 1392mcg in 2009.
The references provided to the court showed that "in all other respects", Good was a well-regarded citizen.
Judge O'Driscoll believed if any sentence other than prison was imposed, it would not be long before the defendant would "relapse" and drink and drive, and the community needed protection from that.
Good was sentenced to a total of 13 months in jail on the three charges.
He was disqualified from driving indefinitely and his 1995 Mitsubishi car was confiscated.
