37-year-old man has been sentenced to 21 weeks in prison for two counts of drink driving and failing to provide a breath sample.
Carl Skinner, of Ash Thomas, Tiverton, was caught drink driving on multiple occasions after being refused service when trying to buy alcohol.
The prosecution at Exeter Magistrates’ Court heard that on June 10, 2024, Skinner was reported by members of staff at a Lidl store in St Austell, Cornwall, after he was refused the sale of alcohol due to him appearing intoxicated. He was then seen driving off in a Ford transit van.
When police caught up with the defendant, he pulled over but drove off again when officers approached him, absconding down a slip road to nearby public gardens.
When Skinner was eventually detained, he was unsteady on his feet and nearly fell over. The court heard he refused to provide a breath sample but then changed his mind.
After providing a positive roadside test, he was taken into custody where his blood sample showed 214 milligrams in 100 millilitres of blood. The legal limit is 80.
On December 25, 2024, police received a call reporting concerns about a blue BMW near Cullompton at 2.45 in the morning.
Officers located Skinner in a summer house at the rear of his property and noted that he smelled of alcohol. He refused to provide a sample, and pulled the bed covers over his head, saying: “I know I’m being arrested for drink driving so somebody has stitched me up”.
On December 12 last year, security staff at a Tesco store in Tiverton called police as Skinner had entered the site with keys in his hand and appeared under the influence. After initially refusing to provide a sample, he was taken into custody where his breath test showed 121 micrograms in 100 millilitres of breath. The legal limit is 35.
The defendant, who works in livestock transportation, has two previous convictions for drink driving from 2014 and 2018.
A probation officer noted that he struggled to get a “full feeling of remorse” from the defendant, or “a proper sense of the risk he has put other road users to on repeated occasions”.
Caroline Salvatore, mitigating, said: “He doesn’t believe he has a problem with alcohol but at the same time agrees that alcohol is the root cause of this behaviour.
“He is remorseful though he may find it hard to show this.”
District Judge Smith sentenced him to a 21-week immediate prison sentence, as well as a six-year driving ban.
Upon sentencing, the judge said: “You have a high risk of reoffending and risk harm to the public.”
Skinner will also have to pay a victim surcharge of £154 and court costs of £250.
This story was produced via the Police & Crime Commissioner’s Criminal Justice Court Reporting scheme.
