NEWS FEED
A New Milton man has been banned from driving for 18 months and fined £350 for causing a serious injury collision in Christchurch while over the drink-drive limit.
Tobias Joe Murphy, 23, was sentenced at Bournemouth Magistrates’ Court on 20 December after pleading guilty to driving with the alcohol level above the legal limit.
He was also ordered to pay £115 costs.
The court heard that at around 2.30am on 15 October a collision occurred on Somerford Road, close to the Somerford roundabout in Christchurch.
Murphy had been to a nightclub with friends and was driving his yellow Fiat Punto from Christchurch town centre along the A35 bypass toward McDonalds. As he reached the roundabout Murphy failed to negotiate the exit onto Somerford Road and collided head-on with a blue Citroen Saxo.
Both cars contained four people.
The front seat passenger of the Punto was taken to Southampton Hospital with suspected internal injuries. The rear seat passenger suffered a broken and dislocated right hip.
The court heard that after the collision Murphy provided a positive breath test. He subsequently gave a sample of blood for testing which revealed that his blood alcohol level was 147 milligrams of alcohol per 100 millilitres of blood. The legal limit is 80.
Police Constable Tim Brehmer, of the Roads Policing Team, said: “Tobias Murphy got behind the wheel after drinking alcohol and failed to negotiate a roundabout causing a serious head-on collision.
“His decision to drink and drive could have led to even more tragic consequences.
“I would like to remind people of their responsibility to ensure they make appropriate plans on how to get home following a night out. If you suspect a friend has been drinking and is about to drive, please encourage them not to get behind the wheel.
“Alcohol impairs many of the functions necessary for safe driving; reaction times and spatial awareness are affected significantly. This may still be the case the morning after, depending on how much alcohol you consumed the night before and when you stopped drinking.”
Dorset Police is currently running its Christmas drink and drug drive campaign which runs until 1 January 2017.
