Banned Barnoldswick driver caught drink-driving

Jake Palmer was caught in a Ford Transit at 1-40am, when police were looking for a white van. He was stopped on the A59 at Gisburn. The 28-year-old blew 79 micrograms of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath at the roadside and 74 micrograms at the police station. The legal limit is 35.

Burnley magistrates were told Palmer had been ordered off the road for 23 months for drink-driving on December 12th, 2017. He had been just days off the end of the ban when he drove with excess alcohol again.

The defendant, from Barnoldswick, has now been disqualified a second time, for 40 months, after the latest incident, on October 30th.

Miss Laura Heywood (defending) told the hearing Palmer had been arguing with his girlfriend and she told him he wasn’t welcome back that night. He decided to drive the van, which he borrowed from a work colleague for a short period, to try and find somewhere to sleep.

She continued: "He accepts it was a silly thing to do in the situation. He fully cooperated with the police and enters a prompt guilty plea here today. He was very much at the end of the disqualification. It was less than two weeks before the end of the disqualification.”

The defendant, of Stuart Street, Barnoldswick, admitted driving while disqualified and driving with excess alcohol. He was fined £500 and must pay £85 costs and a £50 victim surcharge.