A woman who drove through a city centre while more than SEVEN times the drink drive limit today dodged a jail term.
Marilyn Lawrence was caught drunk behind the wheel in Dundee’s Meadowside in June.
She was detained by cops and took a breath test – and gave a huge reading almost seven and a half times the new limit, imposed in December last year.
Lawrence, 39, of Naltam House, Dundee, pleaded guilty on summary complaint to a charge of driving with 164 microgrammes of alcohol in her breath.
The limit is 22 – meaning she was almost exactly seven and a half times the legal limit.
The offence took place on June 25.
Paul Parker Smith, defending, said: “The court will see there is a report that is positive in terms that she is engaging with alcohol counselling.”
Sheriff Lorna Drummond QC imposed a community payback order with one year’s supervision, an alcohol treatment requirement and 200 hours unpaid work in the community.
She also banned Lawrence from driving for 32 months.
Sheriff Drummond said: “The reading here is exceptionally high.
“You have pleaded guilty to this offence.
“This is a reading that warrants custody.
“However, you are a first offender and you are clearly someone who has an alcohol problem.
“It seems to me that as a direct alternative to custody I am able to deal with this other than by sending you to jail.”
Scotland’s drink drive limit was slashed in December 2014.
The previous limit for breath tests was 35 microgrammes in 100 millilitres of breath, which means Lawrence would have been more than four and a half times the limit.
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