Grandad nabbed for getting L-plater grandson to drive home
A grandfather who knocked back beers at a Frankston family catch-up thought he was doing the right thing by asking his L-plate grandson to take him home. Big mistake.
South East
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A man who asked his L-plater grandson to drive him home after he had too many beers at a family party has been nabbed for drink-driving.
Maurice Ngametua Turia, 69, faced Dandenong Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday on one charge of drink driving.
The court heard Turia knocked back “four or five beers” before sliding into his car’s passenger seat and requesting his grandson to take him to his Cranbourne home.
The car was pulled over at a booze bus testing site on Cranbourne-Frankston Rd about 9.30pm on May 12.
Turia’s grandson blew 0.0 but Tura failed, recording 0.87.
Under Victorian road rules a passenger supervising a Learner has to abide by the same regulations as if he was the driver — meaning he can’t be over the normal .05 limit.
The act would normally result in a driving ban, but magistrates do have discretion and can choose to waive a licence disqualification.
In court, Turia’s defence lawyer said her client, who pleaded guilty to the drink-driving charge, was at a family Mother’s Day event when he drank beers and “mistakenly” asked his grandson to take him home.
She tendered four references attesting to his “excellent character” and pleaded with the magistrate not to ban Turia, a timber hand, for his first ever driving indiscretion.
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Magistrate Julie O’Donnell said the references portrayed a man of good standing who had made a mistake.
“I have to say I have very rarely exercised discretion in drink-driving cases,” Ms O’Donnell said.
“But he has been driving for nigh on 40 years and never had a traffic offence (before this).”
Turia was fined $600, with no conviction recorded.
No licence disqualification was imposed.