Millicent Mary Dempsey appeared in Masterton District Court yesterday on a charge of excess breath alcohol.
Police prosecutor Garry Wilson said Dempsey got in her car and slumped up against the side of the door after she had been drinking.
Dempsey was found to have a breath-alcohol level of 483mcg on October 11 on State Highway 2 near Featherston. The legal limit is 400mcg. She had also taken some methadone that morning, according to Mr Wilson. Ms Elder, also representing Dempsey, said she accepted the police prosecutor's facts.
"Ms Dempsey is not a drinker," she said. "This particular occasion she had a small amount of alcohol and obviously didn't mix well with her medication."
Judge Tom Broadmore convicted and fined Dempsey $500, ordered her to pay court costs and disqualified her from driving for a minimum of six months. "It seems to me you actually deserve credit for keeping your drug habit under control," he said.
