A 69-year-old Burrill Lake who left a trail of destruction at Dolphin Point while driving under the influence of alcohol has been jailed for nine months.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Leonard Stanley Croughan faced charges of driving under the influence and mid-range drink driving in Nowra Local Court on Friday.
Magistrate Gabriel Fleming jailed Croughan for nine months with a non-parole period of three months but he has appealed the severity of the sentence.
Court documents stated Croughan was driving white Ford Falcon station wagon which left a trail of damage in Dolphin Point Road and Seaside Parade at Dolphin Point, south of Ulladulla on May 25 last year.
Police said between 5pm and 6pm Croughan’s car collided with a boundary fence, knocked two letter boxes out of the ground and bent a water main to a 90-degree angle.
The vehicle allegedly continued down Dolphin Point Road and collided with a give-way sign at the corner of Seaside Parade.
At both sites police found parts of the vehicle’s bumper bar.
The car was also seen driving on the incorrect side of Wyoming Avenue, with a vehicle travelling in the opposite direction forced to pull off onto the grass verge to avoid an accident.
The vehicle was found at Croughan’s home address with two flat tyres.
Police found Croughan asleep in his bed and said when they attempted to question him he appeared intoxicated.
Court papers stated he tried to stand several times but his feet kept slipping out from under him.
At one stage he attempted to get out of bed by grabbing a bedside table which he only managed to pull towards himself on the bed.
Officers said he could not tell them how his vehicle had got the two flat tyres.
Croughan pleaded guilty to a mid range drink driving offence on November 5 last year.
Police allegedly spotted his vehicle travelling south on the Princes Highway.
The onboard police computer system indicated Croughan’s car may have been driven by an intoxicated driver.
Police stopped the vehicle in Wyoming Avenue at about 5.20pm and undertook a random breath test which resulted in a reading of 0.155.
Croughan allegedly told police he had been drinking at home and had had a number of scotches during a two-hour period and was driving to the bottle shop to get more alcohol.
Court papers stated Croughan had previously been convicted of high-range drink driving in 2013, which resulted in him being disqualified and undertaking in the alcohol interlock program for two years.
Magistrate Fleming said there was no alternative to jail and sentenced him to nine months’ jail.
Croughan’s appeal will be heard in Wollongong District Court on March 16.
An application for bail was refused.