Recovering cancer patient crashed car while she was over the drink-drive limit

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A recovering cancer patient who had a row with her partner crashed into two vehicles after she took to the wheel of a car when she was over the drink-drive limit.

Chesterfield magistrates’ court heard on September 26 how Gail Baines, 63, of Church Street, Eckington, had consumed about three-quarters of a bottle of white wine when her Mercedes SLK collided with the two vehicles.

Prosecuting solicitor Lynn Bickley said: “She was in a Mercedes driving along Main Road, at Renishaw, and passed over a railway bridge and drove around a sharp right-hand bend and collided with two vehicles including a Vauxhall and a Toyota Yaris coming in the other direction.”

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Police revealed that Baines’s speech was slurred and she smelled of alcohol, according to Mrs Bickley, and she gave a positive roadside breath test.

Police.Police.
Police.

Baines registered 85 microgrammes of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath, when the legal limit is 35 microgrammes.

She told police she had been drinking at home and had consumed three-quarters of a bottle of white wine and had not eaten anything and was heading to a petrol station to buy cigarettes.

Baines, who is of previous good character, pleaded guilty to exceeding the alcohol drink-drive limit after the incident on September 3.

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Defence solicitor Michael Wosskow said Baines is recovering after successful cancer treatment last year but she has been suffering with post-operative side-effects.

These have included a poor appetite, digestive problems, exhaustion, stress, insomnia and anxiety as well as making serious errors of judgement.

The probation service stated Baines, who works in the property business, had told them she had an argument with her husband and had resorted to consuming alcohol to cope with the situation and she was sorry.

Magistrates sentenced Baines to a community order with 40 hours of unpaid work and ordered her to pay £85 costs and an £85 victim surcharge.

She was also disqualified from driving for 18 months but the ban can be reduced by 19 weeks if she completes a drink-drive rehabilitation course.

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