Police officer Simon Jones banned from the roads for six months
A long-serving Sydney cop has received a driving ban after he was caught drink-driving. The ‘embarrassment’ the police officer suffered after the incident has also been revealed in court.
Macarthur
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An officer who drank four pints before driving has told of the shame of being taken back to the police station where some of his colleagues were still working.
Simon Jones had been sharing jugs of beer with friends before he was pulled over in Richardson Rd, Narellan on October 11.
The 36-year-old, from The Oaks, was off-duty at the time when he blew a reading of 0.088 alcohol, classed as mid range drink-driving.
The father-of-two was at Downing Centre Local Court on Monday where he was banned from driving for six months.
His lawyer Joshua Blom told the court he also faced the “shame and embarrassment of being taken back to the police station where many of his colleagues were.”
He told the court the officer of 15 years was also demoted and is unable to apply for a promotion for 12 to 18 months.
He was also ordered to pay a $200 fine.
He was pulled over by Campbelltown Highway Patrol for driving without his head lights at night.
He had been at The Village bar and had “fallen into the trap that many others have fallen into” of sharing jugs of beer, and losing count of the number of drinks he’d had, Mr Blom said.
He was taken back to Eagle Vale RBT Station, where he recorded a blood-alcohol reading of 0.088.
“The impact it has had on his professional and personal life has been significant,” Mr Blom said.
“It’s the position he finds himself in ... the position he’s put himself in”.
He faced the “shame and embarrassment of being taken back to the police station where many of his colleagues were.”
“This is an offence that affects people of good character,” magistrate Erin Kennedy said.
“In relation to the way you will be dealt with, it’s the same as everybody else.”
She acknowledged the punishment he had already suffered as a result of his profession.
“You’re just a person doing a job and you’ve made a mistake, and you need to be seen that way,” Ms Kennedy said.
The court heard Mr Jones shared his police officer status and his experience with his peers at the traffic offenders program, which Ms Kennedy called “brave”.