A woman who crashed her car while nine times over the drink-driving limit told police she had ‘a wine with her mum’ over lunch.
Gemma Purcell, 34, was found crying in the gutter by police after she crashed her Suzuki Swift in Wollongong, south of Sydney, at 2pm on July 21, last year.
When asked if she had been drinking alcohol Purcell said: ‘Yes. I had a wine at lunch with mum,’ according to the Daily Telegraph.
After a roadside breath test, it was discovered she had one of the highest readings ever recorded in NSW.
Gemma Purcell, 34, (pictured) was found crying next to her crashed Suzuki Swift before she blew over nine times the legal alcohol limit. She told officers she had a wine with her mum and a beer before the crash
She was arrested on the spot and taken back to the police station for further questioning.
She later admitted she’d had had a 375ml bottle of Tooheys New but ‘vomited a little’ after consuming it.
Purcell appeared in the Wollongong Local Court on Friday after pleading guilty to the high-range drink driving charge.
The court heard how she was a ‘heavy drinker’ who drank every day with her boyfriend.
Magistrate Mark Douglass said Purcell had serious issues with alcohol that needed to be addressed.
Magistrate Mark Douglass sentenced the woman to 15-months jail but allowed her to serve it within the community through an intensive corrections order and demanded that she get professional help for a wide range of issues
‘With that reading I am surprised you were able to converse with police. Given that circumstance the court concludes you are an alcoholic and you have a real issue with alcohol.’
She was sentenced to 15-months jail, to be served in the community by way of intensive corrections order.
She must participate in mental health treatment and abstain from alcohol.
Her licence was suspended and her car must be fitted with an interlock device for two years.
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