Mansfield drink driver’s ban means working extra hours to keep his job

Mansfield Magistrates’ Court heard police officers saw James Vickers swerving his black Audi A3 on St Peter’s Way, Mansfield town centre, after he had previously clipped a kerb.

Lottie Tyler, prosecuting, said a test revealed he had 72 microgrammes of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath – the legal limit is 35mcg – after being stopped on August 13, at about 11.30pm.

Vickers, of Jenny Becketts Lane, Mansfield, admitted drink driving.

Andrew Bevan, mitigating, said that Vickers has no previous convictions and this is ‘his first and last involvement with the criminal justice system’.

He said the 29-year-old intended to get a taxi from the pub, adding: “The stupid thing about it was he was only two or three miles from home.”

The court heard Vickers suffers from depression and a recent medical emergency involving his young son had a ‘profound effect’ on him.

Mr Bevan said Vickers, a dispatch manager, will have to work longer hours to keep his job after the inevitable disqualification.

He said: “He has let himself and his family down.”

Vickers was fined £634 and ordered to pay a £254 surcharge and £85 costs.

He was banned from driving for 18 months, but offered a rehabilitation course which will reduce the disqualification by 18 weeks, if he completes it before October 6, 2023.