Overview
- Police stopped a red Toyota Yaris after officers saw it swerving on the A52 in Stoke-on-Trent on July 18 and said they smelled alcohol.
- Officers were unable to get the driver to complete a roadside breath test and took her to the station for a blood sample.
- Laboratory results presented at North Staffordshire Justice Centre showed about 45 μg/L of cocaine in her blood against a 10 μg/L legal limit and around 800 μg/L of benzoylecgonine, the cocaine metabolite.
- Victoria Chesworth pleaded guilty to two counts of drug-driving and magistrates handed her a 17-month driving disqualification, a 12-month community order with 20 rehabilitation days, and ordered her to pay £239 in costs.
- Chesworth told the court she had cooked beef bourguignon to explain the smell of wine, said a prior stroke made the breath test hard, and said the powder found in her car was prescribed medication; the court accepted her plea but imposed the full rehabilitation and ban penalties.