Lambrini and vodka binge mum crashed her Mazda when sat-nav conked out
‘VERY ASHAMED’ ACCOUNTANCY STUDENT SPARED JAIL AFTER HITTING VEHICLE WHILE FOUR TIMES DRINK-DRIVE LIMIT
A MUM-OF-TWO who crashed her car while more than four times the alcohol limit has avoided jail after she blamed the accident on her becoming ‘disorientated’ when her sat-nav stopped working.
Accountancy student Kimberley Tierney, 34, who was drunk on vodka and Lambrini, had been using the device to help direct her to a friend’s home when it suddenly ran out of charge. As she fumbled to find her way along a motorway bypass, she ploughed her Mazda TS2 into the back of a stationary vehicle.
Police called to the A555 near Manchester Airport breath-tested Tierney and found she had 144 micrograms of alcohol per 100 millilitres of breath. The legal limit is 35mg.
It emerged she had been drinking alcohol for four hours the previous evening, fell asleep for a further four hours then carried on drinking briefly when she woke up again. She claimed she felt ‘OK to drive.’
It is believed no one was injured in the 1pm incident which occurred on November 29, just two days before
KImberley Tierney was banned from driving for three years
Greater Manchester Police began its annual Christmas drink-driving campaign.
At Stockport magistrates court, Tierney admitted driving with excess alcohol but was sentenced to 12 weeks in jail, suspended for a year, after JPs said jail would have an ‘impact’ on her children. She was also banned from driving for three years.
The court heard on the evening before the incident, Tierney had been drinking with her partner from 7pm to 11pm, during which she knocked back several glasses of vodka and half a bottle of Lambrini.
She woke up at 3am and drank more booze before falling asleep. It is thought she then slept in until she believed she was fit to drive to a friend’s house in Hale, near Altrincham.
A probation officer told the court: “She pleaded guilty at the first opportunity and was on the way to a friend’s house and said her sat nav ran out of charge, which disorientated her as she was on an unfamiliar road.
“She was stressed as she was recently coming to an end of a temporary job and would have an effect in her finances.
“As a result on the evening before she stayed up late, had four glasses of vodka and half a bottle of Lambrini between 7pm to 11pm and then, fell asleep on the settee. She awoke at 3am and drank another couple of glasses of vodka and wine.
“She stayed downstairs as her partner was upstairs. Much later on in the day she went out to visit a friend and had been on the road for an hour. Said she felt fine and feels devastated by her actions.
“She has shown remorse and did seem (to have) genuine insight into the potential for causing death or serious injury. She has no previous convictions and Mrs Tierney is currently living with her partner and two children.
“She left school at 16 and since leaving has obtained further qualifications in a diploma in accountancy and qualifications in travel and tourism. She’s the main carer of her two young children.”
Tierney, who was not represented, said: “I’m very ashamed for what happened and genuinely thought I was OK to drive. I am very sorry for my actions. It has shaken me to the core, nothing like that’s ever happened.
“I have never been in trouble before and it’s put me off driving if I’m honest.”
Tierney, from Gidlow, Wigan, was told by chair of the bench David Ross: “Driving a car whilst under the influence of alcohol level indicated cannot be minimised and will not be by this court. We are suspending the prison sentence due to the fact you have no previous convictions recorded against you, plus the impact upon the children. I think this will deter you from making any further offences.”
Tierney was also ordered to complete 150 hours unpaid work and pay a total of £207 in court costs at a rate of £5 per week due to her finances.