Driving ban for Thame man who admitted drink-driving

(Image for illustrative purposes only)

A man from Thame has been disqualified from driving for three years, after admitting drink-driving in Priest End, Thame, on November 25. Joseph Curran, 22, of High Street, Thame, had 58 micrograms of alcohol in 100ml of breath, above the legal limit of 35 micrograms. As well as the driving ban, he was fined £220, a £22 victims’ surcharge, and £85 costs.

A total of 143 people have already been arrested in the first two weeks of Thames Valley Police’s Christmas anti drink-driving campaign, Is it worth the risk?, which was launched on December 1 and will run throughout the month.

Of these, 73 have been charged, 49 bailed and 21 released with no further action. Thirty-seven arrests were made in Oxfordshire, 44 in Berkshire and 62 in Buckinghamshire. Of those, 121 were men, a five per cent increase on last year, and 22 were women, a 24 per cent reduction.

The wrecked car, after a drunk driver caused the death of Grace Hardman in 2009 (Imaged courtesy of Daily Mail)

In 2009, Joe Robinson of Thame, was in a coma for three weeks with serious head injuries after a crash that killed his school friend, Grace Hadman. The driver of the car they were travelling in, was drunk and was consequently jailed.

Police are targeting people they suspect of driving under the influence of drink or drugs, both on the way home from nights out and the morning after a heavy night and the campaign includes a Twitter account, @ThamesVP, and a Facebook page. Thames Valley Police says: “If you drink alcohol or take drugs and drive, you put yourself, your loved ones and other road users at risk, don’t take a chance, it isn’t worth it.

“Drink and drug driving is totally unacceptable and is a serious crime. Thames Valley Police works to tackle drink and drug driving all year round. Drinking and driving wrecks lives, most obviously the hundreds of victims and their loved ones who are killed each year. But it also changes the lives of the people who are selfish or stupid enough to drive when they are not fit to do so.”

On average, Thames Valley Police catches 250 people each month for drink driving. So far this year the number of people caught for drink driving has increased by 14%.
Out of the 2,095 persons caught drink driving, 16% were women and 84% were men.