Fined and banned

[Nwicker60]

Drove while suspended due to medical condition

A MAN, who drove without licence and insurance, should never have been on the road in the first place.

Gordon Green's licence had been suspended by the DVLA on account of his epileptic condition, Wick Sheriff Court heard yesterday.

Green, 46, pleaded guilty and also admitted a record. He was fined £300 and banned from driving for six months.

Police, engaged in an unrelated inquiry, came upon Green's abandoned car at Lhaid, on the A882 near the village of Watten on February 20. Inquiries revealed that the accused had been the driver and that he did not have a valid licence or insurance.

Solicitor Fiona MacDonald said that Green's licence had been suspended because of his epilepsy which was not his only health issue.

She continued: "He had a panic attack during the day and he had to get away and drove the car. He realises it was the wrong thing to do."

Sheriff Andrew Berry, who saw confirmation of Green's condition from his GP, said he was, under the circumstances unclear as to what penalty to impose, given the accused's limited income and the fact that imposing unpaid work wasn't feasible.

However, Miss MacDonald explained that Green would be able to pay a fine given sufficient time.

Banning Green of Flat 1, Fairview House, Halkirk village, Sheriff Berry said that any further such offending would constitute driving while disqualified and warned him that would be "a very serious matter".

The sheriff commented that the current charges were not isolated offences noting that Green had committed the same offences previously and had also been sentenced for driving with excess alcohol.

Green who will pay the fine at the rate of £10 a week, will also have to sit and pass a driving test if and when he is eligible to do so.