Summer Lynette Furzer caught driving after seen “stumbling around”

A Sunshine Coast mum and childcare worker has faced court for driving while drunk in a major shopping centre carpark after she was spotted “stumbling around” by onlookers.

Maroochydore Court House. Picture: Patrick Woods.

A childcare worker and mother who was caught attempting to exit a shopping centre car park with an alcohol reading more than three times over the legal limit has faced court.

Summer Lynette Furzer, 44, pleaded guilty at the Maroochydore Magistrates Court on Wednesday, February 22 to driving over the high alcohol limit.

Police Prosecutor Rebecca Lambert told the court members of the public alerted police to Furzer “driving a vehicle after she’d been observed stumbling around in what they say was an intoxicated state” at 4.55pm on February 11, 2023.

She was located by police attempting to exit the Sunshine Plaza car park at Maroochydore and enter the roadway.

A breath test came back with an alcohol concentration of 0.188 per cent.

Lawyer Bruce Johnstone said Furzer and her husband were “in the middle of constructing their first family home”.

“They’ve bought the land and are now drawing down to build the house,” Mr Johnstone said.

Court documents state the couple are “under financial strain” because of home loan repayments they are having to pay while renting.

Mr Johnstone said the couple both work full time and are “hardworking”.

“I would describe them respectfully as ordinary people,” Mr Johnstone said.

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He told the court Furzer has had challenges with alcohol and noted a letter from a psychologist which refers to “counselling before this incident”.

“My client has been challenged with having to deal with this issue,” Mr Johnstone said.

“No disrespect to any other family member, but I understand there is a family history of this type of dependency.”

Magistrate Rodney Madsen said he needed to consider the “general deterrence” for this type of offence and “the risk they pose to other members of the community when they make those decisions”.

“You were clearly in no fit state to drive that car,” Mr Madsen said.

“You were very, very fortunate there were no more severe consequences associated with that driving.

“To some extent you’ve probably reflected upon what you might have felt if someone who was driving a motor vehicle after consuming a lot of alcohol had hurt or killed your own children,” he said.

Furzer was fined $1050.

She was disqualified from driving for a period of nine months.

A conviction was recorded.

Originally published as Summer Lynette Furzer caught driving after seen “stumbling around”