A MAGISTRATE has spoken on the nexus between alcohol and crime, saying that if she could, she would make it a banned substance.
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Sentencing a drink-driver to the maximum penalty available, Magistrate Ellis said she wished she could ban alcohol as it gets "so many people in trouble".
Benjamin Chambers, 33, of Raglan Street in South Bathurst, appeared before Magistrate Ellis to answer a charge of mid-range PCA.
Reading the police allegations, Magistrate Ellis noted it was the manner of Chambers' driving which caught the attention of police and, when stopped, he recorded 0.165, though when he went under a breath analysis, his reading was 0.114, bringing him down into the mid range.
She also noted Chambers had a prior mid-range PCA, but said of concern "was the fact he was on an Intensive Corrections Order (ICO) at the time".
Magistrate Ellis also said she disagreed with an assessment report saying Chambers was a low risk of re-offending, adding "breaching an ICO was not the smartest way to go".
Chambers' solicitor Kayana Theobald told the court her client didn't shy away from his criminal record, and has identified significant problems with alcohol.
She said he is the sole carer of his teenage son and accepts full responsibility for his actions.
She said his mental state leading up to the offending behaviour was quite extraordinary.
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"He was doing well, but made a poor decision," she said.
She said he was in a severe state of grief, having had a fight with his girlfriend.
"It was a poor decision. It's not an excuse, but he is taking responsibility," she said.
Her Honour asked Ms Theobald what Chambers was doing about long-term relapse.
She was told he had made contacts through the MERIT (Magistrate's Early Referral Into Treatment) program and was barely drinking.
"He said the program, over 12 weeks, had changed his life," Ms Theobald said.
"It's given him coping strategies which means he's unlikely to come before court again."
Her Honour said she was considering an ICO, and asked how Chambers would cope with no alcohol.
Ms Theobald spoke to her client, who said he would.
Speaking to Chambers, Her Honour said while alcohol is a legal substance, through her work and seeing its effects, she wished she could ban it because "it gets so many people in trouble".
She said because alcohol is legal and readily available, Chambers needed to take complete control.
"Alcohol is the basis of your problems and it's for that reason you should stay away from it completely," she said.
"Don't have any."
Police alleged, in documents before the court, that Chambers was pulled over in the early hours of March 19 at Gormans Hill.
Police said they were patrolling the Bathurst area when they saw a Nissan Navara drifting onto the wrong side of the road along Havannah Street, turning into Gormans Hill Road.
Police said they activated their lights and pulled the car over in Waterworks Lane.
Chambers got out of the vehicle and, according to police, said: "I've been drinking. I'm in trouble."
Police said they introduced themselves and advised Chambers he was going to be given a breath test.
They said they asked if Chambers had been drinking, to which he replied that he had had a few.
The roadside test returned a reading of 0.165, according to police, and Chambers was placed under arrest and taken to Bathurst Police Station for a breath analysis, which recorded 0.114.
Police said Chambers told them he was unsure when he had started drinking, however, his last drink had been just prior to police pulling him over.
He said he had been drinking VB at home and at the Kelso Hotel and had not had any food.
For the mid-range offence, Her Honour imposed the maximum penalty, nine months' imprisonment, saying there was no alternative, with the sentence to be served as an ICO instead of full-time custody.
"If you breach it, you go before the parole board and it will decide how long you serve full-time custody," she said.
Magistrate Ellis also ordered Chambers to undertake 80 hours of community service.
She added supervision to the order, saying she wanted Chambers to continue alcohol and other drug prevention.
She also disqualified him for six months, backdated to March 19, 2022, with a 12-month interlock order.
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