A mum-of-two who drank two bottles of wine at the side of the road after her car broke down then refused to take a breath test has walked free from court. Elizabeth McKnight was ordered to take a breathalyser after police found her 'unsteady on her feet and slurring her words' on a grass verge next to her stationary Nissan Qashqai.
But the 26-year-old twice refused to give a sample, claiming she had only been drinking at the side of the road whilst waiting for her father to collect her. She said she had thrown away two empty bottles of wine further up the embankment but officers found no bottles on the verge - instead discovering a near-empty bottle of wine in the footwell of the vehicle.
The Nissan was also found to be uninsured. At Chester magistrates court, McKnight faced a possible six months jail sentence after she admitted failing to provide a specimen of breath but was given a 12 month community order.
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She cited her ADHD, anxiety and dyslexia during the hearing and claimed she was a victim of domestic violence. Arron Smith, prosecuting, said: "It was August 6, and officers were on mobile patrol when they saw a broken-down Nissan Qashqai on the grass verge by the A55 in Chester heading westward.
"Upon approaching the vehicle Miss McKnight and her passenger were stood outside of the vehicle. Checks showed that it had not been insured since July 12. The policy holder was the registered keeper, Miss McKnight.
"The officer noted that she was unsteady on her feet close to the edge of the road. Initially she did not give details of who was driving prior to stopping. However, it was confirmed to the officer that Miss McKnight was indeed the driver.
"She was detained in the police vehicle. The officer noted that she smelt of intoxicating liquor. Her eyes were glazed and red and her words were slurred when she spoke.
"She admitted to driving the vehicle. She said that she'd had two bottles of wine since the vehicle had broken down and had thrown the bottles down the grass verge.
"The officer said he was unable to find the two bottles on the verge, but that a near empty bottle was found in the footwell of the passenger seat. She refused to give a roadside sample and she was arrested and taken into custody where the drink drive procedure was commenced.
"She again refused to provide a sample of breath in custody."
McKnight had two previous convictions for fare dodging on the railways. A probation report said she had been going away for a trip with a friend and had stopped off at her father's house to pick up a tent and while there she had some cider.
"She accepted that she should not have consumed alcohol," the report said. "After the car broke down, she rang her father and also a friend so that she could continue with her journey.
"She proceeded to sit on the grass verge and decided to drink some wine. She accepted that was a reckless thing to do and has expressed remorse.
"She said she has learnt her lesson and she will not be before the court again. She is able to demonstrate understanding of the risk posed to the public while under the influence of alcohol.
"A disqualification will cause her inconvenience as she needs transport to take her two children to school. She would benefit from the intervention of a programme to address her thinking skills and problem-solving skills."
The report said McKnight is unemployed and has ADHD, dyslexia and anxiety and that she had previously been a victim of domestic violence. Chris Hunt, defending, said his client thought the Nissan was insured and added: “She is a young woman with two children under the age of 10 and has never been in any real trouble before.
"This offence is punished severely because the danger is, by failing to provide a sample, you could be covering up a massively high reading. That is the mischief that this is designed to address.
"She accepts that this is a deliberate refusal to provide but there is no evidence of greater impairment which would point towards custody. Due to the wine she consumed after breaking down, she wasn’t able to deal with the situation sensibly when police arrived.
"The car was broken down, so she clearly wasn't planning to drive the car. The circumstances are that had she cooperated with the officer she would not have committed an offence.
"She made a stupid decision not to give a sample as she thought 'I am going to blow over the limit'. But if she had not been over the limit when she drove the car and was not going to drive it again, she had not done anything wrong.
"She just says that she was by the car and she was drunk. If she had done what the officer was asking her to do, she would have been alright."
McKnight, of Bromborough on the Wirral, Cheshire, was also banned from driving for two years and ordered to complete 60 hours unpaid work plus 20 rehabilitation activity days with the probation service. She was further ordered to pay costs and a victim surcharge of £234.
"Failing to provide a sample is a very serious offence," said chairman of the bench Roy Barron. "If it wasn't, nobody would give a sample. We kind of assume that you were drunk and that's why you didn't do it."
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