A Norton-sub-Hamdon man who was more than three and a half times the drink-drive limit when he collided with stationary traffic has been given a suspended prison sentence and a 30-month driving ban.
The police were already in the vicinity responding to an emergency call following an accident on the A37 at Shepton Mallet when Simon Orchard hit the back of a line of traffic that had come to a halt.
The police then diverted their attention from the emergency to the defendant as they suspected he was drunk and then arrested him.
Orchard, 50, of Great Street, pleaded guilty to driving a Land Rover at Shepton Mallet on March 20 after consuming excess alcohol when he appeared before District Judge Angela Brereton, sitting at Yeovil.
Jenna Morgan, prosecuting, said that police were responding to an emergency call on the A37 with their lights and blue sirens on and other vehicles had come to a stop.
"The defendant was driving his Landrover at the time, and as he approached the stationary traffic he failed to stop and collided with the end vehicle," she said.
"The officers then stopped and could see Orchard who was unsteady on his feet and slurring his words, so arrested him."
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He was taken to the police station where a breath test was conducted which revealed a high reading of 126mcg of alcohol in 100ml of breath.
The legal limit is 35mcg of alcohol.
Defending solicitor Neil Priest said that his client had been working away for two days for his job as an IT manager which was unusual for him, and he took the opportunity to enjoy a bit of free time.
"He enjoyed a dinner at a hotel the night before and drank too much on that evening," he said.
"Not only did that impact on the amount of alcohol in his system, but he was not thinking straight and drank on at least two other occasions when he stopped at service stations during the journey.
"The collision was minor, and he had been suffering a lot of personal stress, along with the recent death of his father."
District Judge Brereton told Orchard that he had provided an extremely high reading and clearly he had not been okay to drive at the time.
She imposed a 10-week custodial sentence, suspended for one year, and disqualified him from driving for 30 months.
She also ordered him to undergo a 120-day alcohol monitoring programme and imposed costs of £85 and a £154 surcharge.
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