Woman three times over drink-drive limit filmed smashing into lorry and rolling over
Dramatic footage showing a car crashing into a lorry and overturning on a busy road as part of an appeal for people not to drink and drive.
The video, captured in June 2021, shows a silver Vauxhall Corsa attempting to overtake a lorry on a dual carriageway. Despite driving along a relatively straight piece of road, the car swerves before crashing into the lorry and overturning.
Miraculously, the driver survived the crash with a grazed knee and some pain from the seatbelt, police said, but a roadside breath test showed she was three times above the legal alcohol limit for driving.
The 39-year-old blew 140 micrograms of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath, three times above the limit of 35, while a later blood test showed there were 254 milligrammes of alcohol in 100 millilitres of blood, well above the limit of 80.
The woman from Leicester has since pleased guilty to driving a vehicle while above the legal alcohol limit and was sentenced at Leicester and Rutland Magistrates Court on June 6 to eight weeks in prison, which was suspended for 18 months, police said.
She was also disqualified from driving for five years, placed on a daily curfew for eight weeks, and ordered to pay costs and a victim surcharge
Footage of the crash on the A50 near Findern in Derby has been released by Derbyshire Police as part of an appeal for people to not drink and drive.
Sergeant Scott Riley of Derbyshire Police's Roads Policing Unit said: “This collision could have easily had fatal consequences, for the driver or for others. It also has a huge impact on the families of those affected. Please think, is it really worth putting yourself or others in danger for the sake of a drink?
“Any amount of alcohol affects your ability to drive, and while the summer might be coming to an end, we will be continuing to target those who choose to ignore our advice and get behind the wheel while under the influence of drink or drugs.”
The release of the video comes just a few weeks after West Midlands Police announced it was cracking down drivers who "who get behind the wheel drunk, or drive the next morning when they’re over the limit after a heavy night".
The force said it would be conducting a targeted and intelligence-led operation and carry out breath or drug tests on suspects.
Sergeant Mark Bull, from our Road Harm Prevention Team, said: "By getting behind the wheel under the influence of alcohol you're putting the lives of yourself, any passengers, other road users and pedestrians at risk. Remember, you can still be over-the-limit the next morning. Drugs can also seriously impair your judgement when driving."
Information published by the road safety charity Brake shows that when just over the alcohol legal limit, drivers are still six times more likely to be involved in a fatal collision than someone who has drunk nothing.
West Midlands Assistant Police and Crime Commissioner Tom McNeil added: “West Midlands Police has my full support ahead of the summer drink and drug drive enforcement campaign.
“It is never acceptable to get behind the wheel of a car while under the influence. People who do that are putting lives at risk."
In the first two weeks of December last year the force also arrested 85 motorists for drink or drug driving.
Meanwhile, Staffordshire Police arrested 111 people in December 2021 over drink-driving and failure to provide a sample, with another 12 detained on suspicion of drug-driving after returning a positive test.
Inspector Mark Joynson, of the force's Roads Policing Unit at Staffordshire Police, said a small number of drivers " still believe that having one or two drinks is OK", but warned that "even a small amount of alcohol can affect your ability to drive safely"/
“Alcohol makes your reactions slower and processing information more difficult – putting drivers, passengers and other road users at risk," he said.
“You are more likely to be involved in a crash if you drink and drive and therefore more likely to be serious injured or worse.
“The legal consequences of drink driving can include: a minimum 12-month driving ban; a criminal record; a hefty fine, up to six months in prison and a licence endorsement for 11 years. All of these could also result in increased car insurance costs, or loss of employment.”
