An Aldeburgh motorist who crashed into a telegraph pole while over the drink-drive limit has been banned from the road for 14 months.
A driver was travelling on the B1122 from Aldeburgh towards Leiston on January 30 this year when he came across a Nissan Qashqai, which had crashed into the pole, snapping it in two and leaving wires and debris on the road, Suffolk Magistrates' Court heard.
Damian Robertson, 33, was seen behind the wheel of the Qashqai, slumped against the driver's side window, and the vehicle's airbags had been deployed, Wayne Ablett, prosecuting, told the court.
The police were called and Robertson failed a roadside breath test before being taken to Ipswich Hospital to be assessed by medical staff.
A blood sample was taken from Robertson at the hospital and following analysis, revealed 129 milligrammes of alcohol in 100 millilitres of blood. The legal limit is 80mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood.
Robertson had not been seen driving by the witness or the police, but made full admissions in police interview to driving while under the influence of alcohol, Mr Ablett told magistrates.
The officer also said he showed remorse during that interview, Mr Ablett added.
Father-of-two Robertson, of The Plantation, Aldeburgh, pleaded guilty to drink driving before magistrates on Tuesday.
The court heard he had no previous convictions.
Mark Thompson, mitigating, said Robertson had got into an argument with his wife after "a few drinks" at the pub on the day of the crash.
"At some point, Mr Robertson decided to go and cool down and made the unfortunate decision to get into his car and drive away," Mr Thompson said.
"You might say the rest is history."
Robertson has since apologised to police and is "very ashamed and very remorseful" of his actions, Mr Thompson added.
Magistrates fined Robertson £715, and he was also ordered to pay a victim surcharge of £72 and court costs of £105.
He was disqualified from driving for 14 months, but magistrates did offer him the opportunity to take the drink-drive rehabilitation course, which will reduce his ban by 14 weeks if completed.
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