Station officer put in headlock by drink-driver

A DRINK-DRIVER pulled up to a McDonald’s Drive-Thru with an open can of lager in his van and hit the car in front.

Bobby Dowling slurred his words as he tried to speak to the cashier and her manager noticed his eyes were glazed and his head was swaying from side to side.

Speaking at Cardiff Crown Court, prosecutor David Pugh said: “The cashier could see an open can of Stella Artois in the central console of the vehicle.”

The court heard the incident occurred at around 10.25pm on June 25 at McDonald’s on Cardiff Road in Barry.

Mr Pugh said the cashier was serving a customer when she heard “a bang” as that car was struck from behind by the defendant driving a Mercedes van.

The court heard Dowling then drove up to the serving window and the cashier could smell alcohol in his van.

Mr Pugh said: “He did not really speak to the cashier. He said a few words which were slurred and difficult to understand.”

When police arrived, they found the van parked across two bays and Dowling with a “glazed expression”.

Officers found an open can of lager and partially drunk bottle of vodka in the passenger seat.

The court heard there was damage to the front, nearside wheel, as if the van had hit a kerb.

Dowling was arrested and taken to Cardiff Bay Police Station. A breath test found 96 microgrammes of alcohol per 100 millilitres of breath.

Prosecutors said he was two and three quarter times over the legal limit of 35 microgrammes.

He was kept in custody and detention officer Christopher Beynon checked on him in the early hours.

The court heard the officer asked: “Are you all right?” But Dowling did not respond.

Prosecutors said he approached the defendant and “gently” shook him, concerned he may need medical attention.

Mr Pugh said Dowling “lashed out” and grabbed the officer’s wrist.

The court heard he managed to get his wrist free and again asked the defendant if he was all right, then Dowling squared up to him in a “fighting stance”.

The court heard the officer tried to take him to the ground, but Dowling managed to get him in a headlock.

Prosecutors said the detention officer became “dizzy” and felt like he was going to lose consciousness.

He tried to get the defendant to loosen his grip and they both fell to the ground, with Dowling on top, bruising the officer’s ribs.

Other officers arrived and helped to restrain Dowling.

When he was interviewed, he accepted he had been drinking at a pub in Wenvoe and was driving the Mercedes van.

He stated he had no recollection of hitting a car at McDonald’s or of assaulting a police officer.

The defendant told officers he had a “drink problem” and was suffering from depression and anxiety.

Prosecutors said he had been before the courts for 34 previous offences, including battery and common assault.

In May, he was given an 18-month jail term, suspended for two years, for inflicting grievous bodily harm on a former partner by throwing her to the floor, leaving her with a broken ankle.

Dowling, 29, from Gateholm Close, Barry, admitted drink-driving and assault occasioning actual bodily harm in breach of a suspended sentence.

Jonathan Webb, defending, said: “He cannot provide any reasonable explanation as to why he decided to drive on the night in question.”

He said Dowling, a dad-of-two, told him he went into “self-destruct mode” and now feels “genuine remorse”.

Mr Webb said his client is addicted to alcohol and can act aggressively when he is intoxicated.

He added: “He is deeply ashamed and embarrassed and regrets his actions.”

Judge Richard Williams noted the custody detention officer described himself as “fighting for his life” during the attack.

Dowling was jailed for 30 months and disqualified from driving for 24 months from the time he is released. Bobby Dowling