Bircotes man busted for drink drive in Worksop

Leslie James Barker, 56, of Cumberland Close, admitted driving with excess alcohol in the early hours of July 1.

The court heard he was stopped by police on Blyth Road where a breath test revealed he had 83 microgrammes of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath, when the legal limit is 35 microgrammes.

Melanie Hoffman, mitigating, said: “He had gone to his brother’s party and had a few drinks. He felt like he was fit to drive.

“Over the last year he’s been going through a divorce.

“He recently learned that his brother and sister were both suffering from cancer.

“Everything got on top of him. He knows he shouldn’t have done it.”

Miss Hoffman said his job was dependent on having a valid licence, but his employers were looking to work around this.

Barker was banned from driving for 16 months and fined £231.

He was also ordered to pay £85 court costs and a £30 victim surcharge.