142 drunk drivers spend weekend in custody

SEVERAL motorists who drink and drive tend to forget that being nabbed for such results in one spending their entire weekend in a holding cell until Monday morning.

This is a result of the suspension of magistrates court proceedings during the weekend due to a constrained budget in the judiciary.

The past weekend saw 142 motorists being nabbed for drinking and driving countrywide and these will be making their court appearances on Monday morning before the respective magistrates in the four regions of the country.

This is according to a police report issued by the Acting Chief Police Information and Communications Officer (PICO) Assistant Superintendent Nosipho Mnguni on Sunday, April 21.

When a motorist is arrested for drinking and driving, subsequently they are charged with contravening Section 91 as read with Section 122 (1) of the Road Traffic Act of 2007.

If accompanied by an accident, a motorist is additionally charged with contravening Section 89 as read with Section 122 (1) of the same Act.

With the breathalyser making a return after it was suspended during the Covid-19 pandemic, a motorist’s alcohol content is now measured and determines their sentence/ fine in court.

Before, when arrested for drinking and driving, one would easily plead not guilty to the offence, and with no evidence backing the charge, many would walk scott-free and ‘getting away with murder’ in the process.

Despite it being a rainy weekend with roads being slippery, there were no fatal road accidents reported to the REPS.