Derbyshire drink driver found asleep in campervan with two dogs

Police found a drunk Derbyshire woman asleep with two dogs in the back of a campervan she had just crashed into a wall, a court heard.
Watch more of our videos on Shots! 
and live on Freeview channel 276
Visit Shots! now

Prior to the rude awakening Jessica Atkinson, 42, who was three times over the drink drive limit, was heard revving the engine of a VW Caddy van at 4am by householders in Bonsall.

Prosecutor Ben Payne told Chesterfield Magistrates Court the car was seen parked after having been reversed into a wall during the March 27 incident.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Mr Payne said: “She was apologetic and got out of the car with two dogs. She said the handbrake had slipped.

The DL, Bonsall, where the crash happenedThe DL, Bonsall, where the crash happened
The DL, Bonsall, where the crash happened

“She got back into the car and drove up the footpath and hit the same wall again.

“The police attended and found two dogs in the back of the van with the defendant who was asleep.”

After being arrested and taken into custody Atkinson provided a breath test of 106 micrograms of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath. It was also discovered she had no insurance.

Read More
Chesterfield man stabbed pal in neck with glass during girlfriend row in pub
Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Atkinson’s solicitor John Wilford said she had been working in a pub on the night of the crash.

She had borrowed the VW Caddy from a friend, intending to sleep in it near her place of work, and had wrongly assumed her comprehensive insurance covered her to drive it.

Mr Wilford said: “Her husband had attended her work with the dogs - the idea was she would sleep in the campervan with the dogs.

“The dogs were brought to her because he was going to Turkey on business.”

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The solicitor said the crash happened about 300 metres from the pub - near a building Atkinson and her husband were in the process of converting.

He added: “She was apologetic for her behaviour and complied with the police procedure.”

Atkinson, of St Johns Road, Buxton, admitted drink driving and driving uninsured.

District judge Andrew Davison told Atkinson: “The distance driven and the nature of the incident was limited to a very small place out of the public arena.

“But an aggravating factor is the high reading.”

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

She was banned from driving for 25 months, fined £740, made to pay £74 victim surcharge and £85 court costs.

A message from Phil Bramley, Derbyshire Times Editor: Support your Derbyshire Times by becoming a digital subscriber. You will see 70 per cent fewer ads on stories, meaning faster load times and an overall enhanced user experience. Click here to subscribe