Education worker faces road ban after drink driving charge
An education worker caught driving while drunk in Washington may have to swap roles at her academy after being banned from the roads.
Kerry Stephenson, 40, took the wheel from a friend who was sozzled but forgot to turn on the lights in darkness on Friday, June 6, a court heard.
Police were already looking for the Audi A4 motor after being tipped off about a potential drink driver, prosecutor Sara Kemp said.
Stephenson, of Windsor Drive, Hazelrigg, Newcastle, was soon spotted and pulled over in Radial Park Road, Harraton.
A later evidential breath test at a police station after her arrest proved she was over the limit.
South Tyneside Magistrates’ Court heard Stephenson needs a car to switch daily between two sites for her County Durham-based school employer.
But she must now find alternative transportation after receiving a 16-month disqualification – and her job may be impacted, her solicitor admitted.
Mrs Kemp said: “Police received some reports of a potential drink driver.
“They located the vehicle and saw that it was being driven without lights and swerving across lanes.
“They put on their blue lights and brought the vehicle to a stop. A breath test was failed. She also had no insurance.”
Stephenson, who has no previous convictions, pleaded guilty to charges of drink driving and driving without insurance.
She gave a reading in breath for alcohol of 57mcg. The legal limit is 35mcg.
Alastair Naismith, defending, said: “She had been out and the person who should have been driving was too intoxicated to drive.
“She took over and didn’t realise that she was also over the limit. It was a family member’s car, and she thought she was insured.
“However, when the car was insured a few weeks before, the insurance was changed on that policy.
“She recently got a new job that requires her to move between two schools in County Durham during the day.
“She may be losing that role as a result of this disqualification.”
District Judge Zoe Passfield also fined Stephenson £738 and ordered her to pay a £295 victim surcharge and £85 court costs.
The judge offered her a place on a drink driver rehabilitation programme, completion of which reduces a ban by around a quarter.