A disgraced Tayside prosecutor who smashed into another car in Arbroath Road, Dundee, admitted a drink driving offence when she appeared in the dock at Dundee Sheriff Court.
Janine Bates (30), from central Dundee, had a breath alcohol level of more than three times the legal limit, the court heard.
She was fined £630 and banned from driving for three years when she admitted driving with excess alcohol (119 mics) in Arbroath Road on Wednesday night and driving carelessly, colliding with another car and damaging both vehicles.
Bates appeared red-eyed and tearful as she was brought up from the cells on Thursday handcuffed to a Reliance officer and sobbed as her lawyer George Donnelly spoke of the “catastrophic effect” this conviction will have on her career.
Appearing for the Crown, Dundee procurator fiscal Catriona Dalrymple said Bates has one conviction for speeding.
She was driving in Arbroath Road and had just negotiated the roundabout at Douglas Road when the accident happened at around 9.40pm.
Bates veered over the centre line and crashed into a Renault Scenic with two passengers travelling the other way.
The smash was seen by a cyclist and a resident standing in a driveway nearby was struck on the head by debris from the accident but was not injured.
The police and ambulance were called and Bates, who was not hurt in the accident, accepted she had been driving.
The other driver sustained a dislocated finger and was taken to Ninewells Hospital by ambulance but the passenger in the car had no injuries.
Mr Donnelly said that, given the court proceedings, Bates will be suspended until various disciplinary procedures are investigated and concluded.
Originally from the west coast, she has been held “in very high regard” by her employer, appearing in various courts throughout the sheriffdom.
Mr Donnelly said that since the break-up of a five-year relationship Bates has felt unable to spend much time alone in her flat and has taken to visiting a network of friends to pass the evenings.
She was driving from one friend’s house to another on Wednesday night and could not explain why she took her car because she had in her possession “enough money to pay for a taxi five times over.”
The case will have “terrible consequences” for her and if she wants to pursue a legal career that will undoubtedly have to be in the private sector.
Passing sentence Sheriff Linda Smith told the shamed prosecutor, “You don’t need me to tell you of the seriousness of your reading.”
She banned her for three years in light of the high breath alcohol reading, but said she had also taken into consideration the effect the conviction will have on Bates’ career and her early guilty plea.
The Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service was asked for a comment on Miss Bates’ employment, and a spokesperson replied, “We can confirm that Janine Bates is a member of COPFS staff, and that she is not presently at work.”