Woman, 26, almost four-times over drink-drive limit found asleep at wheel after stopping to watch Netflix
14.10.2022 - 19:59
/ manchestereveningnews.co.uk
A mother who was found almost four times the drink-drive limit after being caught asleep at the wheel has escaped with a ban and a fine after claiming she had only started drinking heavily when she parked her car to watch a movie on Netflix.
Jessica Matthew, 26, was found in a retail park slumped and unconscious in the driver's seat with the engine still running by shoppers who feared she had suffered a fatal collapse.
But as police arrived at the scene, travel agent Matthew started to wake up and when quizzed was slurring her words and complaining of feeling dizzy. Officers also noticed a bottle of gin and tonic on the passenger seat of her hatchback car.
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A subsequent breath test showed Matthew had 136 micrograms of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath. The legal limit is 35mg.
At Tameside magistrates court in Greater Manchester, Matthew, of Links View, Rochdale, who has a two year old son, admitted being drunk in charge of a motor vehicle but insisted she had not been driving it whilst drunk.
She said had been watching a movie on her phone and blacked out whilst 'binging gin and tonic' after a 'stressful day at work'. In a statement, Matthew said: ''When I drink I can’t stop drinking."
She was fined £200 with £165 in costs and was ordered to pay a victim surcharge. She was banned from driving for 12 months.
The incident occurred on July 15 after Matthew had stopped at Sandbrook Retail Park in Rochdale whilst on her break from her job as an assistant manager at Hay’s Travel.
Ms Shazad Aslam, prosecuting, told the court: "The defendant said she was stressed from work and drove her vehicle to Sandbrook where she attempted to watch a film on her phone