A hen’s party reveller caught last Christmas almost four times over the limit told the court her morning-after drink-driving was a fall from grace.
The 39-year-old mother of four was arrested in the early hours of December 21 after a member of the public sighted her swerving on the road in Gore.
Marlena Eva Dawn Heads-Connor of Hillside, Southland, was before the Gore District Court last week to be sentenced for one charge of drink-driving.
The court heard about 7.21am on the Sunday before christmas, police received a complaint about Heads-Connor’s driving.
She was observed swerving and crossing the centre line repeatedly in Main St.
Five minutes later, police pulled her over and she returned an evidential breath test of 984mcg—almost four times the legal limit.
Heads-Connor told police that she was heading home after a hen’s night, was not sure when she stopped drinking and "should have slept more", the summary said.
Police released a statement in December thanking the person who reported the woman’s poor driving.
Acting Senior Sergeant Christopher Rigby said at the time it was "incredible" no one on the road had been hurt.
Last week, counsel John Fraser said his client was very embarrassed to be before the court and had been tearful as she instructed him.
"This was a fall from grace," he said.
He said she had misjudged and had realised she was not fine to drive before the police pulled her over.
Judge Russell Walker told the woman he understood why she was embarrassed, as she had made it to 39 years of age without ever coming before the court.
"This is a level where you should never have been behind the wheel," he said.
She was fined $1000 and disqualified for six months’ with alcohol-interlock and zero-alcohol licence provisions.
