Over-limit Shropshire lecturer 'bang to rights' over crash, court told
A university lecturer from Shropshire told police he was "bang to rights" after being involved in a car accident having drunk most of a bottle of wine.
Magistrates in Telford heard that Terrence Smith, of Scholars Lane, Loppington, near Wem, was at the wheel of a Vauxhall Vectra when it collided with an Audi on the B5476 not far from the town.
Prosecuting, Mrs Katie Price said that Smith, 56, had lost control of his car after hitting the side of the road and then swerving into the oncoming vehicle.
As both cars had been travelling relatively slowly there were no major injuries, she added.
Police had been called to the accident on March 29 and tested both drivers. While the Audi driver tested negative, Smith was arrested after proving positive, said Mrs Price.
Smith had drunk "most of a bottle of Chilean Merlot" before getting in his car to drive to a lunch, the court was told.
At the police station he gave a reading of 121 microgrammes in 100 millilitres of breath, the legal limit being 35 microgrammes, before telling officers: "I'm bang to rights, guvnor."
He pleaded guilty to driving with excess alcohol.
For Smith, Mr Oliver Nicholas said that the defendant had never had any experience with the police before and was not aware that his comments were being written down, or would be read out in court.
He said that the phrase was totally out of character for the defendant who was a respected member of the community.
Magistrates banned Smith from driving for 29 months and gave him a five-month curfew from 8pm to 7am.
The court was told that Smith had quit his job as an IT lecturer to care for his father who had died recently.
