A man caught driving while more than four times the legal alcohol limit his third drink-driving offence has avoided a jail sentence at Dundee Sheriff Court.
Ian Bell, Vicarsford Lodge, Leuchars, was told by Sheriff Richard Davidson that due to the “peculiar circumstances” of the case, he would not impose a custodial sentence and instead placed him on a community payback order under supervision for 18 months, with 200 hours of unpaid work.
He also banned Bell from driving for five years and ordered him to resit the driving test.
Bell, 42, admitted driving with excess alcohol (142 mics) at the Tesco garage forecourt, Riverside Drive, Dundee, on November 1 and driving while disqualified and without insurance.
The court heard Bell was a passenger in the car driven by a woman to the garage.
She got out and went into the shop and Bell was seen moving the car up to another pump while one of the car doors was open.
Witnesses saw Bell struggling on his feet and smelling of alcohol and called police.
Solicitor advocate Jim Laverty said: “He’s very much aware that ordinarily a person appearing on a third contravention would be going to jail.”
A background report indicated a “very sad story” in regard to Mr Bell’s circumstances.
Sheriff Davidson said: “There was a potential for disaster here if he had driven into the petrol pump and damaged it.
“However, they were not normal circumstances at all. He was particularly unfortunate in that it was a very small infraction in its duration.”