Drink driving

A 20-year-old English baker who crashed twice on May 21 before being stopped by a lamppost will be sentenced in the Queenstown District Court on July 25.

Police in eastern Bay of Plenty are disappointed that seven people were last night caught drink driving ahead of the Queen's Birthday weekend.

Vicky Maureen Burr, a recidivist drink-driver who was dobbed in by her daughter after allegedly drink-driving at Roxburgh on Friday, broke down crying in court yesterday as she was remanded in custody.

Police caught two more Telford Rural Polytechnic students drink-driving in the past week.

Posters reminding people not to drink and drive will be distributed to licensed premises in Queenstown around Easter, as part of a campaign throughout the Lakes District and Central Otago.

An 18-year-old who was stopped and allegedly found to have seven passengers in his car in Dunedin early on Saturday will be walking to court this week.

An English tourist who seriously injured two other English tourists in a drunken hit-and-run in Gorge Rd was warned by Judge Kevin Phillips in the Queenstown District Court yesterday it was "inevitable" he would face prison.

A businessman from Australia who fled from a taxi, and then crashed his own rental car on a drunken drive around Queenstown, was "very lucky" no-one was killed, Judge Richard Russell said in the Queenstown District Court yesterday.

A recidivist drink-driver was found by Dunedin police sleeping inside his still-running vehicle yesterday, with his foot on the brake and a bottle of beer in his hand.

The number of people who appeared in the Queenstown District Court yesterday on drink-driving charges arising from the holiday season was "just ridiculous," Judge Kevin Phillips said.

Alexandra police are pleased that only five drivers of more than 2000 stopped in the town during the past three weeks have tested positive for drink-driving.