Mackay Isaac Whitsunday drink or drug-drivers sentenced in February

A golf club manager, teacher, pilot driver, scuba-diving instructor, electrician and miner are among 25 people who appeared in court in February for drink or drug-driving. Read who is on the list.

From a learner driver trying to parallel park to a man who crashed a car while more than four times the legal limit, Mackay Isaac Whitsunday drink or drug-drivers faced court for their actions behind the wheel.

Here is the region’s list of drink or drug-drivers that faced court in February.

Drink-drivers with convictions recorded

Taylor Romaine Tretheway

The golf club manager downed four jugs of Victoria Bitter beer with her boyfriend at Magnums before police busted her behind the wheel of her Honda Civic on Shute Harbour Rd, Airlie Beach.

Proserpine Magistrates Court heard Tretheway, 27, blew 0.196 after a member of the public alerted police to a single-vehicle crash, near the Hermitage Drive roundabout, about 11.10pm on Saturday, January 29, 2022.

Tretheway pleaded guilty to driving under the influence of liquor.

She told the court she had had “a big couple of days” in the lead up to the crash and on the day in question had been sent home from work early as she was a “crying mess”.

The court heard she had a number of personal issues that she said led to her drinking a lot.

Defence lawyer Rosemary Varley said the behaviour was “very much out of character” for Tretheway.

Ms Varley highlighted that no other cars or people were involved in the crash and that the damage to Tretheway’s car suggested it had hit a cement gutter.

She added Tretheway’s licence had been suspended since the date of the offence and she had since been paying for taxis to get to and from work.

Magistrate James Morton said it was very lucky no one including Tretheway had been injured in the crash.

Taking into account the circumstances, he agreed to moderate the sentence from a 12-month licence disqualification to a nine-month disqualification, with a $1200 fine.

A conviction was recorded.

Joanne Koskela

The grader operator had a 0.149 BAC when police intercepted her on Shute Harbour Rd, Airlie Beach because of her manner of driving.

Proserpine Magistrates Court heard Koskela, 47, was driving unsteadily and swerving in and out of her lane as she exited Golden Orchid Drive about 4.10am on Sunday, February 6, 2022.

Koskela pleaded guilty to driving a motor vehicle while over the middle alcohol limit.

Defence lawyer Steven Hayles told the court his client had consumed red wine at a dinner party the previous night, then left her car at her friend’s house and walked back to her accommodation.

Mr Hayles said Koskela walked back to her car and started driving about 4am after receiving a phone call from her brother informing her that their father, who had been battling cancer, had been admitted to Proserpine Hospital.

Mr Hayles said Koskela’s father passed away later that day.

Magistrate James Morton accepted Koskela “had no intention of driving“ if she had not needed to get to the hospital and that Airlie Beach’s lack of taxis that could ”service the joint reasonably” left her with little alternative in the circumstances.

Taking the mitigating factors into account, Mr Morton reduced the sentence from what “should have been” a seven-month licence disqualification to a three-month disqualification, with a $750 fine.

A conviction was recorded.

Brett Ronald Wilson

The 49 year old received his drug-driving sentence at Proserpine Magistrates Court along with the message: “You’re getting too old to be playing with meth”.

The court heard the self-employed carpenter tested positive for drugs in a roadside test on Loop Rd, Jubilee Pocket about 1.50am on November 26, 2021, and analysis confirmed his statement to police that he had “used meth a few days earlier”.

Wilson pleaded guilty to driving while a relevant drug is present in blood or saliva.

He also pleaded guilty to failure to appear in relation to a missed court appearance in February 2022.

Defence lawyer Rosemary Varley said Wilson’s failure to attend court on February 14 was out of character for him and the result of him simply forgetting when he was required to be there.

Ms Varley said Wilson had some previous entries in his traffic history for drink-driving, the most recent in 2019, but none for drug-driving.

She acknowledged Wilson was on a suspended sentence at the time of the drug-drive, but said this was for unrelated “offences of violence”.

Magistrate James Morton fined Wilson $650 and disqualified his licence for one month.

Mr Morton extended the suspended sentence’s operational period by one month and told Wilson: “Keep off the meth”.

A conviction was recorded.

Ry Vincent Mooney

A 26-year-old learner driver was spotted on CCTV cameras trying to reverse parallel park after a dozen drinks.

Ry Vincent Mooney was tested for alcohol consumption on December 12, 2021, after police spotted his car almost sideswiping parked vehicles.

When police approached the car, Mooney was sitting in the back seat and he said he was not the driver.

Officers checked footage from nearby establishments and confirmed Mooney had been getting in and out of the car as he tried to park it on Williams St, Rockhampton.

Mooney submitted to a breath test, and returned a 0.94 per cent blood alcohol concentration.

He was unsupervised while driving, despite being on his learner permit, and had told police he had consumed 12 lemon lime and bitters drinks.

Mooney pleaded guilty to drink-driving while on a learner permit, and for unsupervised driving.

Mackay Magistrate Bronwyn Hartigan fined Mooney $750 and disqualified him from driving for three months.

A conviction was recorded.

Jena-Rose Anne Miller

A “heavily intoxicated” Mackay woman refused to give a breath test after police spotted her drinking on a private property.

Police were called to a private property in Walkerston on January 12, 2022, and found Jena-Rose Anne Miller drinking vodka cruisers with her car parked in the front yard.

Police prosecutor Sergeant Pollard told Mackay Magistrates Court Miller confirmed she had driven to the Margaret St property, where she had consumed four vodka cruisers and a six pack of beer.

There was also a half-filled Bundaberg rum can in the cup holder in the car, while there was a full six pack of Great Northern beer and another can of Bundaberg rum in a plastic bag in the passenger seat area.

Miller was taken to the police station but refused to provide a specimen of breath.

Magistrate Bronwyn Hartigan said Miller must be charged with driving under the influence of liquor because of her refusal, which is akin to a high range drink-driving charge.

Miller pleaded guilty to failing to provide a specimen of breath and driving under the influence of liquor.

She was fined $800 and was disqualified from driving for six months.

A conviction was recorded.

James Wagner Hillery

The 65 year old wrote off a $60,000 LandCruiser in an early-evening crash on Edgerton Rd, Bowen when he was more than four times the legal blood alcohol limit.

Bowen Magistrates Court heard Hillery downed 14 Great Northern beers in the lead up to the December 2021 single-vehicle rollover, pushing his blood alcohol concentration up to 0.222.

Police prosecutor Sergeant Emma Myors said emergency services removed Hillery from his upturned vehicle about 6pm on Thursday, December 16, and paramedics cleared him as stable.

Sergeant Myors said Hillery refused a breath test at the scene but blood taken at Bowen Hospital, where he was admitted with “very minor” injuries, confirmed the high alcohol reading.

Hillery pleaded guilty to driving under the influence of liquor, telling the court he “was an idiot” for choosing to drive home from a drinking session with a mate.

Defence lawyer Kevin Baxter told the court his client “did not go out that day to have a big session” but “had a blow out” after earlier that week receiving a clear test result in relation to previous cancer diagnoses.

Mr Baxter disputed the claim Hillery had refused a breath test, telling the court “severe” injuries sustained in the crash including a blow to the head that knocked him unconscious and a punctured lung made it too difficult to provide one.

The court heard Hillery worked in a “family earthmoving business” in a role heavily reliant on him having a driver’s licence, including driving trucks, visiting quarries at Bowen, Collinsville, and Burdekin, and travelling to Brisbane and Sydney to purchase plant and equipment.

Mr Baxter said his client had a “fairly lengthy” traffic record but taking into account the approximately 20,000km driving he did each year, and that his most recent drink-driving conviction was 16 years ago, it was “not as bad as it first looks”.

Magistrate James Morton said there was “no excuse” for Hillery’s decision to drive while “heavily under the influence”, telling him: “You shouldn’t have been anywhere near a vehicle.”

Mr Morton sentenced Hillery to pay a $1500 fine and disqualified his licence for 12 months, with a conviction recorded.

The court heard Hillery would be subject to an interlock upon applying for a licence at the end of the disqualification period.

Ricardo Fernando Carlos

The electrician was asleep in his parked car with the keys in the ignition and the engine running before police breath-tested him and he told them he had drunk “a litre of liquid – a third of that being gin”.

Proserpine Magistrates Court heard Carlos blew 0.139 BAC in the December 18, 2021 breath test on The Esplanade, Airlie Beach, resulting in the immediate suspension of his licence.

Representing himself in court, Carlos pleaded guilty to being in charge of a motor vehicle when over the middle alcohol limit.

He said he could not remember what he told police when they approached him about 1.30am, but any drinks he had had in the lead up “would have been over the course of about six hours”.

He stressed he “very rarely” consumed alcohol but had become “intoxicated and tired” after helping a friend pour a concrete slab the previous day.

He added he “wasn’t actually sleeping” in his car but was eating McDonald’s, charging his phone, and “avoiding the taxi rank” where he had “observed trouble” in the past.

Magistrate James Morton fined Carlos $850 and disqualified his licence for 10 months, with a conviction recorded.

Carlos was granted a work licence.

Michael Paul O’Connor

A pilot escort was caught out for drink-driving by the very police he was drinking with after a few too many beers at a Middlemount pub.

Mackay Magistrates Court heard former butcher Michael Paul O’Connor had stopped into the pub for the night on Saturday January 9 while escorting a wide load from Dawson Mine to Middlemount.

The court heard O’Connor had a few beers and dinner before going to sleep about 9pm.

Police pulled O’Connor over at 5.50am the following day, where he returned a BAC of 0.057 BAC.

The driver’s lawyer Geoff Govey told the court it was an honest mistake and his client was “very surprised” to be over the limit.

“He was at the pub where he was staying, with the police officer’s who breathalysed him,” he said.

“In fact, he was drinking with them.”

O’Connor pleaded in Mackay Magistrates Court on February 28 to drink-driving.

Magistrate Bronwyn Hartigan noted O’Connor’s lack of recent history and accepted it was an error of judgment on O’Connor’s behalf, noting it was a low reading.

“But given his job, he should be more careful,” Ms Hartigan said.

He was disqualified from driving for one month, a conviction was recorded.

Agustina Rosso

The scuba-diving instructor had just been done for drink-driving when she got herself in more trouble for giving in to a chocolate craving.

Proserpine Magistrates Court heard police observed Rosso, 33, driving at irregular speed and swerving over Port Douglas Rd, Port Douglas just after midnight on November 23, 2019, and a breath test returned a reading of 0.113.

Police prosecutor Sergeant Emma Myors told the court that while in custody at the local police station, Rosso asked to use the rest room and on her way entered a staff kitchen area and took several chocolate bars that were “clearly marked with price tags”.

Sergeant Myors said Rosso put $10 worth of chocolates “up her skirt” and as she walked past officers on her return to an interview room these fell out onto the floor, however she denied she had been trying to steal anything.

Rosso pleaded guilty to driving a motor vehicle while over the middle alcohol limit and attempting to steal consumables that were the property of the Port Douglas police department social club.

Defence lawyer Peta Vernon told the court her client was Argentinian and in Australia on a working holiday visa and her 2019 matters were yet to be finalised as she had travelled to Tasmania and Indonesia following the offences.

Ms Vernon said the driving offence was the result of her client drinking alcohol at a barbecue, while the attempted stealing was because “she was hungry”.

Rosso told the court she had put the chocolates in her pocket but “wasn’t intending to steal” them.

Magistrate James Morton fined Rosso $650 and disqualified her licence for four months.

A conviction was recorded for the drink-driving charge but not for the attempted stealing.

Nathan Sonter

The property manager found out “even golf buggies attract the same attention from police” on Hamilton Island when he was charged with drink-driving in December 2021.

Proserpine Magistrates Court heard police stopped Sonter for a random breath test on the island on Front St about 5.45pm on Thursday, December 16, and he blew 0.112.

Sonter pleaded guilty to driving a motor vehicle while over the middle alcohol limit.

Defence lawyer John Ryan said his client lived and worked on the island, where golf buggies were the main mode of transport, and his job required he be available to respond to emergencies such as burst pipes, or “people stuck in lifts”, at all hours of the day.

Mr Ryan highlighted that Sonter had no similar convictions in the past five years and that his licence had been suspended since the matter’s first court mention.

Magistrate James Morton acknowledged Sonter had a good traffic history and a work history and agreed to minimise the sentence because of his co-operation with the justice system “and the fact it’s a golf buggy”.

Sonter received a $750 fine and a six-month licence disqualification and was granted a work licence.

A conviction was recorded.

Justin Gary George

A miner was found on the wrong side of the law when he got behind the wheel on a Thursday morning.

He was driving along Holland St in Mackay when police pulled him over about 8.30am on December 16, 2021.

Police prosecutor David Epstein said police breathalysed Justin Gary George, who returned a 0.086 per cent reading.

The miner pleaded guilty in Mackay Magistrates Court on January 31 to low range drink-driving.

Magistrate Damien Dwyer disqualified George from driving for six months and fined him $750.

A conviction was recorded.

Patrick Ian Mcilwain

A father was driving through Broad St in Sarina when police pulled him over about 1.31pm on November 8

Patrick Ian Mcilwain was asked to complete a roadside drug test, returning a positive result for methamphetamine.

The 34-year-old West Mackay man pleaded guilty in Mackay Magistrates Court to drug-driving on February 1.

Magistrate Bronwyn Hartigan disqualified McIlwain for one month and fined him $300.

A conviction was recorded.

Drink-drivers with no convictions recorded

Timothy Clifford Watego

A random breath test caught a driver almost three times the legal limit on Bridge Rd.

Timothy Clifford Watego was stopped at 9.25pm and returned a reading of 0.136 blood alcohol concentration.

Prosecutor Harry Coburn told Mackay Magistrates Court the driver had a “lengthy speeding history”, but a “non-existent relevant” history.

Watego completed a defensive driving course after his positive test result.

Magistrate Damien Dwyer fined Watego $750 and disqualified him from driving for 11 months.

Watego received a restricted licence to drive to and from work.

A conviction was not recorded.

Brody Wayne Morris

An 18-year-old carpenter was dropping friends home after a party the night before when police stopped his car for a random breath test.

Brody Wayne Morris, the driver of the car on January 16, 2022, returned a reading of 0.075 blood alcohol concentration.

Prosecutor David Epstein told Mackay Magistrates Court the teenager said he was drinking until about 1am the night before.

The fourth-year apprentice bought a breathalyser and attended a road safety awareness course to educate himself on the dangers of drink-drink driving.

Magistrate Bronwyn Hartigan fined Morris $500 and disqualified him from driving for one month.

A conviction was not recorded.

Carolyn Merle Faltinsky

A 61-year-old Mackay woman was involved in a car crash just hours after drinking a large quantity of booze.

Carolyn Merle Faltinsky was driving her car on Rosewood Dr, Rural View, when the vehicle crashed into a tree at 5.34pm on June 25, 2021.

Prosecutor David Epstein told Mackay Magistrates Court police and other emergency services attended the crash.

Faltinsky was unable to provide a specimen of breath, but a blood sample was taken at Mackay Base Hospital.

She returned a 0.207 per cent blood alcohol concentration.

Faltinsky told police a dog had ran onto the road, which had caused the crash to occur.

She pleaded guilty to driving under the influence of liquor, was fined $1000 and disqualified from driving for 12 months, with six months already served.

A conviction was not recorded.

Joshua Paul Stanfield

A father told a police officer he would shove a taser “up your ass” after he was pulled over for a random breath test at Moranbah.

Joshua Paul Stanfield was stopped on Cunningham Way about 2.45am on October 16, 2021 – he told police he drank “three bottles of VB, a number of Great Northern cans, a number of cans of other types of beer, two or three cans of pre-mixed rum” earlier that night.

Prosecutor Tasman Murphy said Stanfield was “belligerent towards police” telling officers “I will up-end you and shove that 50,000 volts up your ass” relating to the tasers that officers carry.

Stanfield pleaded guilty in Moranbah Magistrates Court to low range drink-driving – the reading was 0.084 per cent.

Solicitor Sam Foster said his client, who was a father of two, had been working in Central Queensland and away from his family, who live in New South Wales, for significant periods of time during the pandemic, which had played on his mental health.

Mr Foster said he had just started a new job and this incident had “caused some tension” with his employers.

“He is very remorseful,” Mr Foster said regarding his client’s conduct and behaviour towards police on the night.

Magistrate Rosemary Gilbert acknowledged Stanfield had completed the Queensland Traffic Offenders Program and said it highlighted the impacts of “poor decision making” on offenders and others.

Stanfield was convicted and fined $500 and disqualified from driving for three months.

Boone Dylan Foden-Dukes

Boone Dylan Foden-Dukes (top) pleaded guilty in Mackay Magistrates Court on February 9 to drug-driving. Picture: Facebook

A member of the public called police to inform them they suspected a drunk person was driving on the road in Marian on November 26, 2021.

Prosecutor Harry Coburn said police arrived shortly after 4.15pm and found Boone Dylan Foden-Dukes parked up nearby on States Rd.

Foden-Dukes told police he was out looking for a friend who he had arranged to meet up with, but when police tested him he came back positive for marijuana and methamphetamine.

The Marian man said to police he had smoked marijuana a few days before, but denied using anything else.

Foden-Dukes told the court he had attended several drug counselling sessions since.

He pleaded guilty in Mackay Magistrates Court on February 9 to drug-driving.

Magistrate William Cooper disqualified him for driving for five months and fined him $1000.

No conviction was recorded.

Kaitlyn Parnis

A woman made the wrong decision when she got behind the wheel after a few drinks with friends.

Kaitlyn Parnis was driving along Habana Rd in Richmond when police pulled her over about 1.40am on December 30, 2021.

Police prosecutor David Epstein said police breathalysed Parnis, who returned a positive reading of 0.065 BAC.

The 22-year-old Habana woman told police she had been drinking at a friends between 11pm and 1pm in Andergrove and had been on her way home.

She pleaded guilty in Mackay Magistrates Court on February 8 to low range drink-driving.

Magistrate Damien Dwyer said the miner had an excellent record and accepted it was an error of judgment.

She was disqualified from driving for one month and fined $300.

No conviction was recorded.

Brandon Thomas Lindeberg

A man was towing his boat at 3.30am on a Sunday when police pulled him over for a random breath test on at Eimeo on January 16.

Prosecutor David Epstein said Brandon Thomas Lindeberg told police he had been drinking the previous evening from about 4pm until 11pm.

Lindeberg’s lawyer Peter Clark told the court the mistake was unusual for his client.

The 28-year-old Eimeo man pleaded guilty in Mackay Magistrates Court on February 8 to low range drink-driving Eimeo Rd.

Magistrate Damien Dwyer accepted it was an error of judgment, telling Lindeberg he “only had to wait 20 minutes”.

He was disqualified from driving for one month and fined $300.

No conviction was recorded.

Jhodene Shauna Annette Scott

The boat yard labourer and mother of two had a 0.100 blood alcohol concentration following a single-vehicle crash at Cannonvale in October 2021.

Proserpine Magistrates Court heard Scott, 23, was trapped in her car after crashing into a barrier and rolling it on Shute Harbour Rd about 8.45am on Sunday October 31, and fire and ambulance crews were required to extricate her.

Police prosecutor Sergeant Emma Myors said injuries sustained in the crash meant Scott was unable to provide an explanation at the time as to what had happened, but she did request use of her mobile phone “to alert her babysitter she would not be returning to her children on time”.

Scott pleaded guilty to driving a motor vehicle while over the middle alcohol limit.

She told the court she had gone out with some girlfriends two nights before the crash and “got in the car thinking [she] wasn’t going to be over the limit”.

She said she suspected the crash was the result of an issue with her car’s ball joint, which had been replaced two months prior, but knew she “couldn’t do anything about it”, such as take the mechanic to court, as she was over the limit.

Magistrate James Morton said it was very lucky Scott’s children were not in the car when she crashed.

On hearing Scott would lose her job if unable to drive herself to and from the boat yard, Mr Morton agreed to adjourn the sentence to allow her time to apply for a work licence.

The matter will return to court on Monday, March 7.

Jacob David Aitken

A Mackay teacher was caught more than three times the limit on a midnight drive in Andergrove.

Police pulled Jacob David Aitken, 29, over on Bedford Rd for a random breath test at 11.51pm on January 13.

The teacher blew more than three times the limit, returning a reading of 0.160 per cent.

Aitken pleaded guilty in Mackay Magistrates Court on February 1 to high range drink-driving.

He told the court it was an “out an out of character” and “irresponsible decision”.

Magistrate Damien Dwyer took into account Aitken’s “excellent history”.

“It is not often I get a 29 year old in here with only a couple of traffic tickets,” Mr Dwyer said.

“You’re obviously normally a law-abiding citizen.”

Aitken was disqualified from driving for eight months and fined $1050.

No conviction was recorded.

Luke Ian Gerard Wright

A boilermaker will be without his licence after he was busted blowing off some steam and driving a short time later.

Luke Ian Gerard Wright was stopped on Cowleys Rd, Ooralea, on December 9, 2021.

Prosecutor told Mackay Magistrates Court that Wright had been drinking from 11am at Sails and Seabreeze in the Mackay Harbour, before being stopped at 4pm.

He returned a 0.114 per cent reading.

Wright pleaded guilty to mid range drink-driving, was fined $1000 and disqualified from driving for six months.

A conviction was not recorded.

Drug-drivers with no convictions recorded

Tennielle Lacy Chandler

Tennielle Lacy Chandler pleaded guilty in Mackay Magistrates Court on February 8 to drug-driving Picture: Facebook

A woman driving a gold-coloured wagon didn’t slow as she drove straight through a stop sign and across a railway in Farleigh.

It was about 4pm on August 5 when police spotted Tennielle Lacy Chandler racing along on Knobles Rd.

The 39-year-old woman told police she didn’t usually drive on Knobles Rd and was unfamiliar with the area.

Prosecutor David Epstein said police tested Chandler who returned a positive result for methamphetamine.

The woman told the court she had experienced a rough time during her life during the past year having lost her job and dealing with family issues.

She pleaded guilty in Mackay Magistrates Court on February 8 to drug-driving.

He disqualified Chandler from driving for six months and fined her $500.

She was granted a restricted licence.

A conviction was not recorded.

Steven Leigh Walker

An Andergrove man found himself in hot water after he was busted with meth and marijuana in his system while driving.

The 30-year-old Andergrove man told Mackay Magistrates Court he was going through a tough spot and made a poor decision.

Prosecutor sergeant Hannah Beaumont said Steven Leigh Walker tested positive for marijuana and methamphetamine.

He said he was distancing himself from people in his life who had contributed to his bad choices.

Walker pleaded guilty to drug-driving and possession of drug utensils.

Magistrate Damien Dwyer allowed Walker to enter into drug counselling.

He disqualified Walker from driving for four months and he was fined $500 for possessing drug utensils.

No conviction was recorded.

Leslie Robert Jones

A man was on a midnight drive in a Nissan Patrol when police pulled him over in West Mackay over for a random drug test on December 12.

Prosecutor David Epstein said Leslie Robert Jones tested positive for methamphetamine.

The 42-year-old West Mackay man pleaded guilty in Mackay Magistrates Court to drug-driving.

Magistrate Bronwyn Hartigan took into consideration Jones’ history which included no previous convictions of drink or drug-driving.

She disqualified him from driving for one month and fined him $300.