Drunk driver was driving on the wrong side of the A5, court told

A NEWTOWNSTEWART man who was spotted driving on the wrong side of the A5 while drunk has been banned for 12 months.

Alistair Boyle (26), of Main Street, pleaded guilty to charges of driving with excess alcohol and failing to stop for police.

Strabane Magistrates Court heard that, in the early hours of April 6, police received a report from a member of the public that a vehicle was driving on the main road from Strabane to Omagh ‘erratically’ and, at one point, it was on the wrong side of the road.

Police later located the vehicle on the Strabane Road in Newtownstewart, but when officers approached, it sped off. The car was eventually found again on St Eugene’s Street, where police stopped the driver.

Boyle identified himself and admitted to having consumed alcohol before getting behind the wheel. He was arrested and brought to Strabane Custody Suite, where he failed a breath test, blowing 85 micrograms of alcohol per 100ml of breath – more than double the legal limit of 35.

District Judge Oonagh Mullan acknowledged Boyle’s early guilty plea and his clean record, noting that while the standard disqualification would be 18 months, she would reduce the ban to 12 months in light of his cooperation.

Boyle was fined a total of £300 and disqualified from driving for a year.