TAKING a 'pinger' and a point of meth days before driving has proved to be the wrong decision for one 30-year-old man.
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Riley Smith of Bonnor Street, Kelso was sentenced after he pleaded guilty in Bathurst Local Court on March 20, 2024 to driving with drugs in his system.
Police said they were patrolling the Bathurst CBD about 3.20am on Wednesday, October 11, 2023 when they saw a silver Kia Rio stopped at a set of traffic lights, court papers state.
Officers signalled the driver - later identified as Smith - to pull over as he turned into the McDonald's carpark on Durham Street.
Smith was drug tested and gave a positive reading for methamphetamine.
"I had a pinger and a point of meth on either Friday or Saturday," Smith told police.
He was arrested and taken to Bathurst Police Station where a second drug test came back negative.
But forensics analysis later confirmed that Smith had meth in his system on the day of the offence.
Sentence
THE "dangerous consequences" of driving with drugs was put to Smith by Magistrate Rodney Brender, who noted his "lengthy criminal history" in open court.
"You shouldn't be taking drugs but if you do, separate it from your driving," Mr Brender said.
Smith was convicted and fined $500.
He was also taken off the road for three months.
