A woman who drank three glasses of wine before rushing to pick up a child from school has been banned from the road.
Staff at the school raised the alarm when they smelled alcohol on Donna Dickson’s breath.
She agreed to surrender her car keys to the school janitor.
Dickson, 50, appeared at Perth Sheriff Court and admitted drink-driving on September 23, 2019.
She was originally charged with driving while nearly six times the legal limit, but she admitted a charge of having 30 microgrammes of alcohol in her system, just above the permitted amount of 22 mics.
It is her second such offence.
In January 2018, she was banned from driving for 70 weeks after failing to provide two breath samples to police.
Panicked
Solicitor Steven Farmer said his client made an “impulsive” decision to drive to the school, which was just a short walk from her home.
“She had three glasses of wine at home before falling asleep,” he said.
“When she woke up, she panicked because she was late.”
Mr Farmer said: “It is a 15-minute walk to the school but five minutes in the car.
“She thought that she would be okay to drive but the school was rightly concerned about the smell of alcohol.
“The deputy head teacher offered to arrange for Mrs Dickson to be driven home but she decided to surrender her keys to the janitor.”
Ashamed
Mr Farmer said: “She is completely ashamed of her behaviour.
“She does not deny she has had an alcohol issue in the past.”
Sheriff Gillian Wade told Dickson: “I’m sure that you appreciate this is a serious offence and it is your second offence.
“I am persuaded that you will benefit from taking part in a drink-drive rehabilitation course.”
Dickson, of Auchterarder, was disqualified from driving for three years but will get a nine month discount if she completes the course.
She was also ordered to carry out 225 hours of unpaid work.
Previous conviction
Dickson was previously reported to police by her worried husband after she repeatedly tried to sneak out to buy alcohol.
Perth Sheriff Court heard Kevin Dickson called police in August 2017 after failing to stop his wife driving to the shops.
Officers arrived shortly after she returned home with bottles of vodka.
She was “unable” to provide a breath test at home and failed a second time after being taken to Perth police headquarters.
