Mother-of-three dabbed whisky on her teeth to ease the pain but ‘must have imbibed some’, court told
A BARRY mother crashed her car into a ditch with her three children on board while over the drink-drive limit, a court heard.
Cardiff magistrates heard how Lucy Williams, 29, had “dabbed whisky on her teeth” to ease the pain of a dental problem.
It was this which led to her being over the limit, her defence lawyer Garth James told the court.
Williams, of Dobbins Road, Barry, was emotional when she appeared in the dock at Cardiff Magistrates Court to plead guilty to drink-driving.
Prosector Ross McQuillan-Jonson told the bench how, on October 5, 2022, Williams crashed her silver Ford Focus, on Argae Lane, Dinas Powys, while returning from a trip to Cardiff to return items to a store.
The fire and ambulance service were called and when police arrived at 6.55pm, a police officer found that “she appeared to be under the influence of alcohol”. She failed a breath test, he added.
Defending Williams, Garth James told the court that she “foolishly followed the advice of others to self-medicate,” by dabbing her own teeth with whisky because of “dental problems which left her in extreme pain”.
The court was told that Williams was found to have 127 milligrams of alcohol per 100 millilitres of blood in her system. The legal limit is 80 milligrams per 100 millilitres of blood.
Following the crash, Williams was taken to hospital. According to Mr James, she had “very little recollection of the incident.” The children were uninjured.
Mr James said Ms Williams “takes full responsibility,” for the incident.
Mr Ivor Morley, chairman of the magistrates’ bench took into consideration Williams’ guilty plea to the offence which “could have been a serious matter”.
The court fined Williams £120, with a £48 surcharge and £85 costs. She was also given a 16-month driving ban. This could be reduced by 16 weeks provided Williams completes a drink-driving awareness course.
