Motorist gets second ban after she is caught drink-driving again

Louise Bennett was stopped by police in Wigan town centre after being spotted leaving a pub and getting into her car.

The 38-year-old was breathalysed and was found to have 53 microgrammes of alcohol in her system, above the legal limit of 35mgs.

And during a hearing at Wigan Magistrates’ Court, it was revealed that she had been handed a similar ban less than two years ago.

Bennett, of Handsworth Road in Blackpool, was given another lengthy ban after justices heard details of the incident.

The court was told how CCTV operators alerted police to Bennett driving a white Mercedes through the town centre, at around 9.30pm on February 1.

They had earlier spotted her going into several pubs, before getting back into her car which she had left parked outside a restaurant.

Officers on patrol spotted the Mercedes a short while later, and pulled the vehicle over. Bennett was reportedly unsteady on her feet when she was asked to step out of the car, and smelled of alcohol.

When asked if she had been drinking, Bennett replied: “Yes, too much.” She was taken to a police station where she failed a breath test.

Justices were then told Bennett had been charged with a similar offence in February 2017, for which she was disqualified for 17 months.

She fought back tears when explaining her actions. “I have no excuse for what I have done,” she told the court. “I am under a lot of pressure at the moment. Everything just got too much. There is no one more sorry for this than me.”

She was told by the chairman of the bench: “You know you did wrong. You have done this before, so you have to pay the consequences.

Bennett was stripped of her licence for 40 months, but can reduce her ban by 40 weeks if she takes drink-driving awareness course. She must also pay a fine of £120 and £85 in court costs.