A retired police officer should have known better than to drive while more than twice the legal drink-drive limit last month, a sheriff has said.
At Cupar Sheriff Court, Sheriff Charles Macnair disqualified John McKenzie (55) from driving for 18 months and fined him £535 for the offence on July 13.
McKenzie, whose address was given as Torridon Court, Alloa, admitted driving on the A91 Guardbridge to St Andrews road with 88 microgrammes of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath, over double the 35 microgrammes limit.
The court heard that McKenzie, who had recently retired after 30 years in the police force, had been spotted driving in an erratic manner at around 7pm on the night in question by a member of the public who contacted the police.
That member of the public suspected McKenzie could possibly be under the influence of alcohol.
McKenzie was stopped by officers on the A91 a short time later and taken to the police station for the necessary drink-drive tests.’Too much pressure’The court was told by McKenzie’s solicitor that his client had been under a lot of stress, having undergone a recent separation along with his retirement from the police, and had been staying in a caravan near St Andrews.
In response to being cautioned and charged, McKenzie is said to have simply stated: “Too much pressure”.
On the date in question, he had been travelling from Alloa to St Andrews and had stopped off in Cupar to consume alcohol at a local pub.
McKenzie’s solicitor went on to say that his client had realised he had had too much to drink and was “deeply embarrassed”, adding that the incident was a “matter of considerable regret” given his background.
Sentencing, Sheriff Macnair said, “Having served a full career in the police service, you more than anybody else should have realised the danger you were putting people into, having had so much to drink you were more than twice the legal limit.”