Long arm of law nabs architect
A BMW was spotted on the side of the road with its engine running and lights on during a late winter evening in Queenstown.
Hours later, police arrived to find a sleeping driver with his seatbelt on, and a strong smell of alcohol from inside the vehicle.
Months after the incident, The Press received a tip that the driver – a prominent Otago architect – had his drink-driving case transferred out of the region.
Hamish McKenzie Muir, 44, a third generation Dunedin architect, did not appear in Dunedin District Court, or in Queenstown District Court, near where the offending took place. Instead, his case was heard in Auckland.
Defendants could have their case transferred if ‘‘the court is satisfied that it is in the interests of justice that the proceeding be heard at that other place or sitting’’, according to the Criminal Procedure Act.
Muir’s Auckland-based lawyer Alistair Haskett said he was instructed by his client in the expectation he would appear in Queenstown, as he did ‘‘cases nationwide by arrangement’’.
‘‘While there were other defences and mitigating circumstances, as the courts have said, unfair procedural laws can create unfair outcomes. Ultimately the decision was made to transfer the case to where I am based in Auckland for a guilty plea, because of the time savings for me.’’
Last week, Auckland District Court confirmed Muir was sentenced on September 22 on a drink-driving charge, and was fined $600, ordered to pay court costs of $130 and disqualified from driving for six months.
While the court was unable to provide the summary of facts, police released it under the Official Information Act.
The summary shows that Muir’s BMW was parked, with its lights on and engine running, on the side of the road of Frankton Ladies Mile Highway Queenstown about 10.45pm on July 16.
A police patrol unit was dispatched to the scene at 4.30am. Muir was observed by the officer to be asleep, with his seatbelt on.
Muir later underwent an evidential blood test which recorded a positive result of 140 milligrams of alcohol per 100 millilitres of blood. The legal blood alcohol limit is 50mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood.