Man in court: "I"m not that stupid"

THE circumstances which saw a man move a car 5m off the road while intoxicated, in full view of police, will be examined, after a magistrate declined to hand down a sentence while the facts were in dispute.

Alan Lawson Brown appeared in Bundaberg Magistrates Court on Thursday where he pleaded guilty to one count of being in charge of a car while over the alcohol limit.

Bundaberg police prosecutor Senior Contestable Klaassen told the court on April 30 at Agnes Water, Brown was the passenger in a car pulled over by police for a random breath test.

With the car left on the side of Round Hill Rd, the court heard police warned a clearly drunk Brown that if he got behind the wheel he would be breathalysed.

"He (Brown) then asked if he could wind up the window and secure the vehicle before he was observed to get in the vehicle and move it 5m forward and down an embankment," Snr Const Klaassen said.

The court heard police charged Brown after he was then breathalysed and blew 0.112 per cent.

Before Magistrate Belinda Merrin began to sentence Brown she warned him his actions placed him at risk of being sent back behind bars after the court heard Brown was released from custody onto parole four weeks prior to the incident.

"If I impose a term of imprisonment, your parole will cancel," she said.

"It just seems completely stupid ... police told you if you moved the car you"d get breath tested."

Brown told the court he"d been doing well on parole bar this incident, and was looking to put it behind him and move on by pleading guilty at the earliest stage.

"Everyone thinks you get out of jail and it"s all beer and skittles and roses, but it"s not," he said.

"When you get out of jail and find everything that you loved is lost and gone, it"s worse than being in jail.

"I fell off the wagon that day and had a couple of drinks."

But that"s when Brown began to dispute that he was warned he would be breathalysed prior to getting into the car.

"I wouldn"t have done that, I"m not that stupid," he said.

"I was under the impression I was able to secure that vehicle and moved it off the road."

Brown claimed he immediately downed a glass of wine before he returned the RBT.

Ms Merrin said she was in no position to rule on the facts and adjourned the the case until July 27 so the facts of the matter could be sorted out between both parties.

Source: https://www.gladstoneobserver.com.au/news/man-in-court-im-not-that-stupid/3455182/

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