Drink and drug drivers sentenced in Proserpine and Bowen courts
From a woman who was arrested for drink-driving twice in 24 hours to a man who openly admitted he drug-drove for decades, here are the stories of Whitsundays’ bad drivers.
Police & Courts
Don't miss out on the headlines from Police & Courts. Followed categories will be added to My News.
From a woman who was arrested for drink driving twice in 24 hours to a young woman rolling her car while three times over the alcohol limit, here are the stories of our Whitsunday region drink and drug drivers.
Traffic conviction recorded:
Simon John Hodge, 34
Simon John Hodge drunk-drove with a blood alcohol concentration of 0.1002 on Chapman St in Proserpine as he was exiting the Metropole Hotel bottle shop drive-through on July 21.
Proserpine Magistrates Court heard Hodge had drank five beers before he was caught, and had two prior drink-driving offences on his record.
Acting Magistrate Stephen Byrne granted Hodge’s request for a restricted driver’s licence, taking into account that he had made an early guilty plea to drink-driving, and had done a Q-Tops course.
Mr Byrne disqualified Hodge’s licence for four months and fined him $650.
Takara Ellie Cremasco
Proserpine Magistrates Court heard Takara Ellie Cremasco was driving on the Bruce Highway at Goorganga Plains when she “blacked out” and “woke up in the water” at 8am on June 28.
The court heard she had been driving “erratically” with a blood alcohol concentration of 0.168.
Cremasco, who was self-represented, told the court she had stopped drinking at 9pm the night before the crash but her medication had affected her blood alcohol concentration.
Mr Byrne disqualified her from driving for 12 months and fined her $2350.
Read what else Cremasco had to say to excuse her behaviour here.
Reece Joseph Hateley
Reece Joseph Hateley had intended to plead not guilty to a drug-driving charge while on a provisional licence on June 2.
He initially told Proserpine Magistrates Court he had smoked marijuana for “medical purposes”.
But he changed his plea to guilty after Magistrate Michelle Howard told him he should consult with a duty lawyer.
“The drugs were only used the night before to help with stress running my business, and fatigue,” Hateley said.
His license was disqualified for four months and he was fined $600.
Jason William Conran
Jason William Conran was yet again back before the courts for drink-driving.
Bowen Magistrates Court heard Conran was caught drink-driving with a blood alcohol concentration of 0.081 on Don St in Bowen at 8.20am on April 22.
Ms Howard said Conran had prior drink driving convictions over the years, including a high reading of 0.116 in 2020.
“If you have a problem with alcohol you’d be well advised to take action,” she told him.
He was fined $750 and his licence was disqualified for three months.
David John Collins
David John Collins was caught driving with marijuana in his system along Shute Harbour Rd in Cannon Valley on May 17.
Prosecutor Lachlan Perry told the Bowen Magistrates Court that Collins initially denied consuming drugs before he told police the last time was “two nights ago”.
“I’d probably done some fishing, it had been two days you know,” Collins said as his explanation to Ms Howard.
He further admitted he had a “very, very” long history of drug-driving stemming back to 1988 but that he had not offended for six to seven years.
Collins pleaded guilty to drug-driving and was fined $550. His licence was disqualified for one month.
Traffic conviction not recorded:
Darcy James Taylor, 21
Single dad Darcy James Taylor was caught drink-driving with a blood alcohol concentration of 0.076 in Proserpine.
The 21-year-old, who has a two-year-old son, faced Proserpine Magistrates Court and told Ms Howard he needed a licence to work to support his son as he had full custody and financial responsibility.
“I will lose my employment if I lose my licence,” Taylor said.
Ms Howard fined him $350 and disqualified his licence for three months.
“This has been a most unfortunate lesson for you,” she told him, adding he would need to apply for a special hardship licence.
Sandra Baumhardt
A German hospitality worker who was caught drug-driving twice within 24 hours in Bowen said she might return to Germany to “have a break”.
Bowen Magistrates Court heard Sandra Baumhardt was first caught drink-driving on Middle St on Saturday, July 29 after police received reports of a person driving “erratically”.
Her blood alcohol concentration was 0.066 and she was issued a 24-hour suspension notice.
Then at 1.17am the next day, she was arrested again after she drove in a residential backyard with a BAC of 0.099.
Police prosecutor Emma Myors said Baumhardt told police she had consumed five drinks on Saturday night and chose to get behind the wheel again as she needed to “get some food”.
Solicitor Peta Vernon said Baumhardt’s behaviour was out of character as she had no prior convictions and her relationship broke down shortly before the incidents.
Vernon said she was living in a hotel, had lost her job, and was now considering returning home to Germany for a few months to “have a break”.
She pleaded guilty to driving on a 24-hour suspended licence, and two counts of drink-driving.
Her licence was disqualified for nine months and she was fined $1150.
Elderly woman seriously injured in car, train crash
A woman in her 80s was flown to Townsville with serious leg injuries after the vehicle she was driving collided with a train and flipped north of Mackay.
Convicted killer going blind in jail after busted with drugs
A convicted killer, who was jailed for his role in a violent home invasion that resulted in the death of a man with a samurai sword, is back behind bars after a relapse resulting from a shocking eye disease.