Woman three times over drink-drive limit filmed smashing into lorry and rolling over
Dramatic footage showing a car crashing into a lorry and overturning on a busy road as part of an appeal for people not to drink and drive.
The video, captured in June 2021, shows a silver Vauxhall Corsa attempting to overtake a lorry on a dual carriageway. Despite driving along a relatively straight piece of road, the car swerves before crashing into the lorry and overturning.
Miraculously, the driver survived the crash with a grazed knee and some pain from the seatbelt, police said, but a roadside breath test showed she was three times above the legal alcohol limit for driving.
The 39-year-old blew 140 micrograms of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath, three times above the limit of 35, while a later blood test showed there were 254 milligrammes of alcohol in 100 millilitres of blood, well above the limit of 80.
The woman from Leicester has since pleased guilty to driving a vehicle while above the legal alcohol limit and was sentenced at Leicester and Rutland Magistrates Court on June 6 to eight weeks in prison, which was suspended for 18 months, police said.
She was also disqualified from driving for five years, placed on a daily curfew for eight weeks, and ordered to pay costs and a victim surcharge.
Footage of the crash on the A50 near Findern in Derby has been released by Derbyshire Police as part of an appeal for people to not drink and drive.
Sergeant Scott Riley of Derbyshire Police's Roads Policing Unit said: “This collision could have easily had fatal consequences, for the driver or for others. It also has a huge impact on the families of those affected. Please think, is it really worth putting yourself or others in danger for the sake of a drink?
“Any amount of alcohol affects your ability to drive, and while the summer might be coming to an end, we will be continuing to target those who choose to ignore our advice and get behind the wheel while under the influence of drink or drugs.”
The release of the video comes just a few weeks after West Mercia Police took part in a national crackdown on motorists driving under the influence.
Over the past five years, 27 people have died and 191 have been seriously injured in West Mercia following collisions where drink or drugs were recorded as a contributory factor.
Officials have said there is no foolproof way of calculating how much someone can drink and remain under the limit, or knowing how much an individual person can drink and still drive safely.
Superintendent Steph Brighton for West Mercia Police said: "It’s extremely frustrating that some motorists still selfishly choose to drive under the influence of drink or drugs in the knowledge that their actions could kill or seriously injure themselves or others.
"Drink or drug driving is completely unacceptable and identifying motorists who are prepared to take such a risk is a priority for us.
"The simple fact is, there is only one way of being sure that you are under the drink drive limit and that is not to drink at all."
In December the force arrested nearly 200 people for drink and drug-driving in the last month, including 50 in the last week.
Between December 1 and December 30 2021 a total of 198 motorists were arrested for drink or drug driving – 121 for alcohol and 77 for drugs.
