Maryborough’s Robert Wade Yates pleaded guilty to drug driving

A father-of-three told a court his children were his biggest motivators to get clean after being busted driving with ice in his system twice.

Robert Wade Yates pleaded guilty to two counts of drug driving when he faced Maryborough Magistrates Court on Tuesday.

A father-of-three who was busted driving under the influence of ice twice has copped more than $1000 in fines and been ordered off the road.

Robert Wade Yates pleaded guilty to two counts of drug driving when he faced Maryborough Magistrates Court on Tuesday.

Police prosecutor Senior Constable Rob Booth said that in April and May, Yates had been stopped by police in Maryborough and had returned positive drug samples on both occasions.

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He admitted to police when he was stopped that had consumed ice before driving.

Constable Booth said Yates had later tested positive to meth on both occasions.

On the first occasion, he also tested positive to cannabis.

Duty lawyer Morgan Harris said Yates had been fully cooperative with the police on both occasions and had made admissions to smoking dangerous drugs.

The cannabis in his system had been prescribed for pain relief after Yates was involved in a car crash a number of years ago.

He had been unaware that he should not drive while using medicinal cannabis, Mr Harris said.

Yates used ice on a “casual and social basis”, he said.

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He had three children who were his “biggest motivating factor” in getting clean, he said.

Yates had worked as a concreter and had then cared for his father, but was now in the process of receiving a jobseeker payment.

Magistrate John Milburn said while an explanation had been offered for the detection of cannabis, there was no excuse for the meth in Yates’ system.

Yates was fined $500 and disqualified from driving for four months for the first offence.

For the second he was fined $800 and disqualified for six months.

Convictions were recorded.