Was driving home from a gig in Carlisle one night, me and the (then) Mrs.
Feeling a little guilty about having three pints during the evening so I decided to pull off the M6 onto a side road and have a kip for a while.
Took the keys out and put them on the back seat of the car.
An hour later there´s a knock on the window. It´s plod, telling me to wind the window down.
The car is a 3 litre Granada, all the trimmings, electric windows.
Snagged the keys off the back seat, put em in ignition, wound the window down, talked to plod.
He advised me to drive half a mile further on to a lay-by.
I declined.
Where I was parked was safe, legal, etc, and I had no desire to drive while I just MIGHT be under the influence.
■■■■■■■ came back half an hour later. Same again, reached back to the back seat for me keys to wind the window down, and he breathed me. JUST over the limit. Spent the night in a cell, me and the Mrs. Penrith, of all places Grrr.
Went to court. In court the ■■■■■■■ said “He reached for the vehicles keys and put them in the ignition AS THOUGH TO DRIVE OFF”!!! wtf?
The court (Judge obviously did not live in the real world) decided this was, in fact true, I DID try and drive off but changed my mind at the last minute. FFS!
13 months and 600 quid.
I reckon if I had not been so naive and trusting that, in general, people are good, and got myself a frikkin lawyer, I might have just got away with it.
Spardo:
Wheel Nut:
It has been argued in court several times about a lorry driver asleep in his bunk or someone asleep in a caravan, because a lorry driver is having an enforceable break he was ok, the bloke in the caravan not so
Just another case of the law being an ■■■. The lorry driver is far more likely to fall out of his bunk and try to drive (however unlikely that is of course), than someone asleep in a caravan, a completely different vehicle.
Just where is the caravan driver supposed to put his keys? And would he be alright if he had first dropped the jockey wheel and wound the hitch an inch clear of the ball? Ridiculous, and just one more reason why police are hated by so many, even though the vast majority would not book anyone in such a case.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
if your lying over the limit in your bunk and the truck next to you catches fire,or the gypjops start robbing you,then the 1st thing you are going to do is fire er up and drive away.
irrespective of whatever sense of real world scenario your in then if plod decides your done,then your arrested and its a court case for the fact that you are in the immediate vicinity of your vehicle with access to the keys.
makes no odds if your in a truck,camper or car,its up to plods choice once you enter his radar.
the fat it dont happen a lot is only due to that fact,whereas being bladdered sleeping in your back seat attracts more attention as does being close to your car coming out of the pub ect.
its completely ridiculous in the case of campers and trucks,but its only down to plod not noticing you or having reason to confront you that it seldm happens.
Did I tell you about the time I went fishing off the Linkspan in Dover Eastern Dock? [emoji23]
What you are driving at the time is irrelevant. You are a driver by profession and should know better. From what I have read, the TCs have a bee in their bonnet about this particular offence and will suspend your commercial entitlement for a month.
Just make sure you go suited and booted. Presentation made the difference to my mate when he was a naughty boy. Every other driver wore jeans etc whereas he wore a suit and he was the only one who didn’t get taken off the road that day. Think of it like a court appearance!