Toowoomba father off the road for three months for drink driving

“Obviously you had an extraordinary amount to drink the night before Even though you were driving at 9.30am the next day, it was still not long enough.”

A TOOWOOMBA man should have waited until lunchtime before driving after a big night on the grog.

Yesterday, the Toowoomba Magistrates Court heard Robert John Alexander Clevin put away 20 cans of Great Northern beer and half a bottle of whiskey while drinking at home with his mates on February 21.

He got up the next morning and drove to see his father-in-law.

The court heard police intercepted Clevin on Bridge St, about 9.30am and conducted a roadside breath test.

It recorded a blood-alcohol concentration of 0.108 per cent, leading to police charging the father of five with mid-range drink driving.

Duty Lawyer Alysha Jacobsen said her client had an exemplary work history.

She asked Magistrate Kay Ryan to order the shortest mandatory disqualification period possible, saying her client could lose his concreting job if he was without transport for too long.

She added that Clevin was remorseful and had entered an early guilty plea.

In sentencing, Ms Ryan noted the mid-range drink driving was a serious offence.

“Obviously you had an extraordinary amount to drink the night before,” she said.

“Even though you were driving at 9.30am the next day, it was still not long enough.”

Ms Ryan fined Clevin $650 and disqualified him from holding a driver’s licence for three months, with no conviction recorded.