Police cop drunken abuse after driver pulled over
A Dunedin woman was caught driving nearly four times over the legal alcohol limit and abused police after being pulled over.
Sergeant Matt Lee, of Dunedin, said police stopped a vehicle in Richardson St, St Kilda, at 3.45am on Thursday.
The vehicle was seen swerving on the road and was being driven by a 41-year-old woman, Sgt Lee said.
''She exhibited signs of recent alcohol consumption and was verbally abusive towards police.''
She recorded a breath alcohol level of 926mcg — nearly four times over the legal limit for adults of 250mcg of alcohol per litre of breath.
Her driver's licence was suspended and she was summonsed to appear in the Dunedin District Court at a later date, Sgt Lee said.
Police also stopped a vehicle being driven by a 61-year-old man at a checkpoint in King Edward St, at 10.20pm on Friday.
The man admitted consuming ''one can of elephant beer and two glasses of wine'' before driving, Sgt Lee said.
He recorded a breath alcohol level of 656mcg.
His driver's licence was suspended and he was charged with driving while over the legal alcohol limit.
He will appear in the Dunedin District Court at a later date, Sgt Lee said.
At a checkpoint in George St, at 11.19pm on Saturday, a 19-year-old driver was stopped.
He admitted consuming six units of KGB-branded vodka before getting behind the wheel, Sgt Lee alleged.
He recorded a breath alcohol level of 824mcg.
His driver's licence was suspended and he was arrested, due to appear in the Dunedin District Court at a later date.
tim.scott@odt.co.nz
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Otago Daily Times
21 hours ago
- Otago Daily Times
Crackdown on Gore drivers
Photo: ODT files Police say they're disappointed at the number of people picked up for dangerous driving and other infringements during a crackdown in Gore. People in about 200 vehicles were breath-checked last week in the Southland town during Operation Bullseye. Sergeant Christopher Dunbar, Gore Public Safety, said officers caught several people driving dangerously and under the influence of alcohol. "Four people were charged with excess breath alcohol over 400mg and one driver was immediately stripped of their licence and vehicle after their third subsequent offence." Infringements were issued to several other drivers, he said, which included for not wearing seatbelts, using their phone, speeding and plenty of breath-alcohol results that were over the legal limit of 250mg per litre of breath. Sgt Dunbar urged drivers to take care while behind the wheel, remove distractions and not drive impaired. "People driving while impaired put themselves, their passengers and other road users at risk, with alcohol and/or drugs a factor in about 20 percent of all fatal crashes. "If you are in any doubt at all about being safe or legal to drive due to impairment, don't - it's not worth it." He reminded people to stick to the basics when driving: watch your speed and following distances, stay focused and put your phone out of reach, wear your seat belt and always driver sober and alert. "Gore police wants drivers to know they can be stopped anytime and anywhere." - Allied Media
1News
2 days ago
- 1News
Qantas fined $98 million for illegally sacking staff
Australia's largest airline has been ordered to pay a landmark penalty of AU$90 million (NZ$98.8 million) for what has been dubbed the largest case of illegal sackings in the country's history. Qantas outsourced more than 1800 baggage handlers, cleaners and ground staff in 2020, in a move the Federal Court ruled was designed to curb union bargaining power in wage negotiations. The embattled airline's appeal to the High Court was unsuccessful, paving the way for the penalty to be awarded on Monday. The Transport Workers Union sought the maximum penalty of AU$121 million (NZ$132.9 million), while Qantas urged Justice Michael Lee to impose a "mid-range" penalty between AU$40 million (NZ$43.9 million) and AU$80 million (NZ$87.8 million). The Federal Court judge cited the "sheer scale of the contraventions, being the largest of their type" as a reason to impose a penalty that would deter other businesses from similar conduct. ADVERTISEMENT He ordered Qantas to pay AU$90 million (NZ$98.9 million) in penalties, AU$50 million (NZ$54.9 million) of which is to be paid directly to the union that brought the proceedings and highlighted the illegal conduct. "To deprive someone of work illegally is to deprive someone of an aspect of their human dignity, and this is not assuaged simply by expressions of regret," Justice Lee said. He was scathing about the embattled airline's conduct after the outsourcing, pointing to efforts to place a "less than candid" picture of the outsourcing decision before the court. He noted Qantas had apologised publicly but then had attempted to deny any compensation payments to the affected workers. Qantas will have to pay the hefty bill on top of a AU$120 million (NZ$131.7 million) compensation payment it has made to the affected ground staff for their economic loss, pain and suffering following the outsourcing. However, Justice Lee said he didn't have enough evidence to be convinced those payments would be made. The court was told the scandal-plagued airline began to finally accept responsibility for its actions in 2023, Justice Lee noted, which coincided with the departure of former CEO Alan Joyce. The courtroom was packed with union members and representatives, who hugged and exchanged smiles after Justice Lee handed down his decision. It comes after Qantas also sold tickets to cancelled flights for several years, triggering more legal turmoil and a AU$100 million (NZ$109.8 million) fine after it was sued by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission.
Otago Daily Times
2 days ago
- Otago Daily Times
Qantas fined $90 million for illegally sacking workers
Australia's largest airline has been ordered to pay a landmark penalty of $A90 million ($NZ99m) for what has been dubbed the largest case of illegal sackings in the country's history. Qantas outsourced more than 1800 baggage handlers, cleaners and ground staff in 2020, in a move the Federal Court ruled was designed to curb union bargaining power in wage negotiations. The embattled airline's appeal to the High Court was unsuccessful, paving the way for the penalty to be awarded on Monday. The Transport Workers Union sought the maximum penalty of $121 million, while Qantas urged Justice Michael Lee to impose a "mid-range" penalty between $40 million and $80 million. Qantas was previously fined after it sold tickets for cancelled flights for several years. (Dan Himbrechts/AAP PHOTOS) The Federal Court judge cited the "sheer scale of the contraventions, being the largest of their type" as a reason to impose a penalty that would deter other businesses from similar conduct. He ordered Qantas to pay $90 million in penalties, $50 million of which is to be paid directly to the union that brought the proceedings and highlighted the illegal conduct. "To deprive someone of work illegally is to deprive someone of an aspect of their human dignity, and this is not assuaged simply by expressions of regret," Justice Lee said. He was scathing about the embattled airline's conduct after the outsourcing, pointing to efforts to place a "less than candid" picture of the outsourcing decision before the court. He noted Qantas had apologised publicly but then had attempted to deny any compensation payments to the affected workers. Qantas will have to pay the hefty bill on top of a $120 million compensation payment it has made to the affected ground staff for their economic loss, pain and suffering following the outsourcing. However, Justice Lee said he didn't have enough evidence to be convinced those payments would be made. Former Qantas CEO Alan Joyce says the airline demonstrated "resilience" during the pandemic. (Dan Himbrechts/AAP PHOTOS) The court was told the scandal-plagued airline began to finally accept responsibility for its actions in 2023, Justice Lee noted, which coincided with the departure of former CEO Alan Joyce. The courtroom was packed with union members and representatives, who hugged and exchanged smiles after Justice Lee handed down his decision. It comes after Qantas also sold tickets to cancelled flights for several years, triggering more legal turmoil and a $100 million fine after it was sued by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission.
