Ban for Meden Vale man who nodded off in car because he was too drunk to drive

Luke Fletcher was 'unresponsive and quite clearly intoxicated' when officers discovered him alseep on Portland Street, in Warsop, at 9pm, on November 27.

Prosecutor Daniel Pietryka said a breath test showed he had 56 microgrammes of alcohol when the legal limit is 35 microgrammes.

He told police he had been drinking at a local pub before driving around and looking for his girlfriend.

Pars Samria, mitigating, said: "The irony of this case is that he stopped the vehicle because it became apparent to him he wasn't fit to drive.

"His partner hadn't told him where she was going. He stopped the car in order to recharge his mobile so he could contact her and fell asleep."

Police were called because he was blocking a driveway, said Mr Samrai.

"Another individual might have said something else, but he held his hands up."

He gave up drinking a few years ago for ‘a variety of reasons’, Mr Samrai said, but recently began again following a bereavement.

Fletcher, aged 43, of Egmanton Road, Meden Vale, admitted drink driving when he appeared at Mansfield Magistrates Court, on Wednesday.

He was disqualified for 15 months but a rehabilitation course will reduce the ban by 15 weeks if completed by September 2023.

He was fined £276 and ordered to pay a £110 surcharge and £85 court costs.