Driver in Soar Valley Way crash banned after testing positive for drugs

A van driver who smashed into the back of another car on Soar Valley Way has lost his licence after admitting smoking cannabis the night before. Jay Winterton, 28, was in a white Mercedes Sprinter when he crashed at about 2.40pm on Tuesday, August 15 last year. He appeared at Leicester Magistrates' Court[1] on Friday, January 5, and prosecutor Andrew Conboy described what happened after the crash.

He said: "At the scene the ambulance service was in attendance and the defendant was one of the drivers. "He blew zero for alcohol and was asked if he'd had any drugs." Winterton admitted smoking a cannabis spliff at 8pm the night before and he then tested positive for a substance in his blood that indicated cannabis use. Jay Morjaria, representing Winterton, told the court what he thought of his client.

He said: "It's a pleasure to meet someone like him as a solicitor. He needs his licence for work but one of his bosses has said he will employ someone to assist him, which shows how well regarded he is. "He has been employed for six years, working five or six days a week and is always the point of call for his bosses."

Describing the accident, Mr Morjaria said the vehicle in front of Winterton had braked to let another car go ahead and Winterton, of Barfoot Road, Aylestone[3], Leicester, failed to stop in time. He added that his client paid support money for his 15-month old child. The magistrates told Winterton, who pleaded guilty to driving over the drug limit, they would give him the minimum penalty they could.

He was banned from driving for 12 months and ordered to pay a GBP323 fine, a GBP129 victim surcharge and GBP85 court costs.

References

1. ^ Leicester Magistrates' Court (www.leicestermercury.co.uk)
2. ^ Police officer attacked by aggressive hairdresser after call to his mother's house in Braunstone (www.leicestermercury.co.uk)
3. ^ Aylestone (www.leicestermercury.co.uk)