Covid-19 cabin fever was why an Invercargill man left home and went to the beach but it was the beers he drank which led him to crash into another vehicle on his way back to Invercargill.
On Tuesday, Logan James Dynes (29), factory supervisor, was sentenced by Judge Kevin Phillips in the Invercargill District Court for drink-driving (134mg) and dangerous driving in Invercargill on August 3.
Defence counsel Bill Dawkins said it was while Dynes was at home self-isolating he decided he had to get out.
Dynes had a few beers before he left and went to the beach.
"He doesn’t know why he did that. It’s not something he would normally do," Mr Dawkins said.
Judge Phillips said Dynes’ decision to drive was both criminal and stupid.
As Dynes returned to Invercargill he crossed the centre line and crashed into an oncoming vehicle.
Both vehicles received extensive damage, with more than $21,000 damage to the victim’s car.
Judge Phillips told Dynes the "gods were on your side" as the victim was not killed.
It was lucky the family of the other driver were not victims of a major tragedy.
The driver of the other vehicle described seeing Dynes’ car come at him as the most scary sight of his life, Judge Phillips said..
While the victim was grateful he had walked away from the crash, he was heartbroken when he saw the damage to the only asset he had.
Mr Dawkins said Dynes had taken full responsibility for his actions. Dynes’ family wanted to be sure the victim ended up no worse off than before the accident, and had lent Dynes the money until a property he co-owned could be sold to pay them back.
Because of this, Mr Dawkins asked that a further fine not be imposed.
Judge Phillips said it was the first time Dynes had appeared in court and he had shown an acceptance of responsibility — as such, he gave him credit for both.
He agreed Dynes should not receive any further financial penalty as he was able to pay the $21,235.04 reparation immediately to the victim rather than drip-feeding it. He disqualified him from driving for nine months.
