Driving ban for student
MAN WAS OVER DRINK DRIVE LIMIT WHEN HE CRASHED INTO PARKED CAR AFTER PARTY
A NOTTINGHAM university student crashed into a parked car after drink-driving following a party, a court heard.
Rory Birchall was behind the wheel of a Suzuki Swift in Forest Road West, Arboretum, when the collision happened at 5.40am on Sunday, July 19, last year.
Birchall, 23, of Harborne, Birmingham, failed a roadside breath test when police got there.
He was cautioned and said: “The last time I had a drink was at least two hours before I drove the car.”
A further breath test showed he had 56 micrograms of alcohol per 100 millilitres of breath, over the limit of 35.
Over a live link to Nottingham Magistrates’ Court, Birchall pleaded guilty to driving-driving.
The court heard he was dealt with at the same court on February 22, 2019, for drink-driving, and had been fined and disqualified from driving for 15 months.
In mitigation, the court was told more about the circumstances of the latest incident and that his last drink had been two hours before he drove.
He had just finished his degree at Nottingham Trent University.
He had been at a friend’s house where he took some musical equipment to “effectively have a party”, said his lawyer.
The equipment was going to be carried back but his car was noticed by some of his friends who were offering to take the equipment home.
It was suggested to Birchall the equipment was driven home in his vehicle and he made “the very foolish error” to give in to their requests.
He crashed into the parked car when he was turning a corner.
“His friends took the equipment back to the house which was close by,” explained his lawyer.
“He went back to the car to wait for the police to arrive.”
Birchall suffered a blow to his nose when the car crashed and he went to the friend’s house to get cleaned up.
He then went to the Bridewell custody suite and then to hospital to get checked over.
Of the offence, his lawyer said: “He knows what a foolish mistake it was. He knows, as a consequence of that, he is going to be banned from driving for three years.”
He is now doing unpaid work in a research and development role with a small business and travels by train.
Birchall was fined £120, ordered to pay £85 costs and a victim surcharge of £34.
His mandatory driving disqualification was set at three years.
He knows what a foolish mistake it was
Rory Birchall’s lawyer
A NOTTINGHAMSHIRE hospital trust has launched an investigation after a woman labelled her birth experience ‘barbaric.’
The mum, who did not wish to be named, gave birth at Queen’s Medical Centre on November 3.
The 29-year-old woman from Nottinghamshire has complained to the Patient Advice Liaison Service (PALS) following the incident.
The woman claimed after she was induced on November 2, 2020, she was left on an induction ward and told she would not be moved into a labour suite until she was in labour.
The woman said by 11pm she was in “a lot of pain” and asked the midwife to check if she was in labour. She claimed she was left in a ward “alone” with “all the lights off”.
She said: “I wanted to be on the labour suite so I could have my partner with me.
“It went on for hours them saying I was only 2cm dilated. I was begging for pain relief and they only gave me paracetamol and a syringe of medicine later on. I was in agony, I was being sick.
“It got to 3.30am and they put monitors on me and said I was still only 2cm dilated. At 4am I said I needed to push and my bed was suddenly surrounded by nurses.
“I was wheeled to the labour suite and my partner was called. He walked in just after 4.30am and my daughter was born 15 minutes later.”
It was horrible for me and my partner to be separated. It was emotionally horrendous.
In December, the couple submitted a formal complaint about the experience. She added: “It was horrible for me and my partner to be separated. It was emotionally horrendous and still is. We were lucky that our baby is fine but we always have that question of what if something was wrong?
“My partner had absolutely no involvement with the scans and to be brought in 15 minutes before she was born felt like a massive disappointment.
“They say the baby birth is the best day of your life but this was the worst day of my life. To be alone is just barbaric. It was terrifying.”
The woman said she wants to ensure that “this never happens to anyone again”.
A spokesperson for Nottingham University Hospitals Trust said: “We are sorry this patient didn’t receive the level of care she expected while using our services.
“We are investigating this with our complaints team and we will work with her during this process to answer any questions she may have.”