Jail again for drink driver caught FIVE times over limit

A boozed-up driver whose alcohol reading was so high 'he should have been medically dead' has been jailed for the second time in three months.
Mansfield Magistrates CourtMansfield Magistrates Court
Mansfield Magistrates Court

District Judge Jonathan Taaffe said Gary Radford’s reading was the highest he had encountered in 30 years.

He told Radford: “You were five to six times over the legal limit and frankly with that level of alcohol, medically you should be dead.

“You have five previous convictions for drink driving - one of the worst records I have ever seen.”

Police were called to the village hall car park, in Oldcotes, after a motorist reported Radford’s driving on October 15.

A breath test revealed he had 185 microgrammes of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath when the legal limit is 35 microgrammes.

Radford told police he pulled over before consuming 15 cans of Strongbow cider, but officers only found one can in his car, and a forensic expert disputed his account.

Two days later, Radford appeared at Sheffield Magistrates Court for another drink driving charge, and he was given 16 weeks in prison on October 21.

Zahra Hussain, mitigating, said Radford had been working with the probation services and alcohol treatment workers since his release.

“He has been punished for a previous like matter. There is now support in place for him in the community.”

Radford, 33, formerly of Mellish Road, Langold, and now living in Maltby, admitted driving with excess alcohol, and without insurance, when he appeared at Mansfield Magistrates Court on Wednesday.

“Your driving was of such a bad standard that a member of the public thought to call the police,” said Judge Taaffe.

He jailed Radford for 16 weeks and banned him from driving for five years minimum, and until he passes a re-test.

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