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Drink-drive case ditched

18th July 1991, Page 8
18th July 1991
Page 8
Page 8, 18th July 1991 — Drink-drive case ditched
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Which of the following most accurately describes the problem?

• Another drink-driving charge against a sleeper cab truck driver has been thrown out of court, just six weeks after a Scottish court dismissed similar charges against Fearns Tankers driver Peter Haigh (CM 30 May-5 June).

Alan Rutherford was breathalysed during a statutory rest period. The prosecution withdrew its case before Chorley magistrates when forensic evidence was produced showing that Rutherford would have been below the drink-drive limit before he was due to start driving again.

The case against Haigh crashed when the court accepted that the truckstop he was parked in was not in a public place.

Rutherford, of Caplow Terrace, Wishaw, was breathalysed in the Charnock Richard services lorry park with his engine running at 02:15hrs on 6 April. Defending, David Edwards argued that Rutherford had no intention of driving before his rest period was up and his blood level was legal. The curtains of the cab were drawn and he was only running the engine to warm up the heaters.

Rutherford's case was strengthened when the police produced tachograph charts which showed his established working pattern was to park up from 22:00hrs on Fridays until 09:00hrs the next day.

The United Road Transport Union has launched a campaign to stamp out incidents of police waking up drivers parked in their cabs in a truckstop and breathalysing them (CM 4-10 July).

The union is distributing 50,000 leaflets in truckstops, cafes and haulage depots.

General secretary Frank Griffin says that many drivers are forced to sleep in their cabs after an evening drink because there are not enough truckstops with bedrooms.


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