Doncaster drink-driver in ‘self-destruct mode’ before hedge crash

Stacey Harper lost control on Walkeringham Road and started to walk off towards Gringley on the Hill, on January 10, said prosecutor Alexis Mercer.

She was stopped by police 15 minutes later, accepted she had been drinking and handed her car keys over.

A breath test revealed she had 100 microgrammes of alcohol when the legal limit is 35 microgrammes.

A member of the public who was travelling in the opposite direction saw Harper veer across the road before crashing.

The court heard she has one previous conviction for drink driving from December 2020 when she was banned for 18 months.

Pari Seeley, mitigating, said Harper was seriously injured when she was run over in June this year by a former partner who was later jailed.

"She fully accepts she hasn't dealt with this properly," she said, adding that Harper, a chef at a roadside diner, was in "self destruct mode."

"She needs to address the problem as she isn't coping with it," said Ms Seeley. "As a result of the conviction she will lose her job. It's quite clear this lady needs some assistance."

Harper, aged 46, of the Oval, Conisbrough, admitted drink-driving when she appeared at Mansfield Magistrates Court, on Tuesday.

She received a 12-month community order with ten rehabilitation days and 100 hours of unpaid work. She was ordered to pay £85 costs and a £114 surcharge.

She was disqualified for 36 months, but a rehabilitation course could reduce the ban by 25 per cent.