An oil and gas technician was found “groaning” in his car the morning after a night out, before driving off while more than double the legal alcohol limit.
Scott Davidson had been drinking at a friend’s house in Alford on Saturday March 9, leaving his Mini hatchback outside the Co-op shop on Donside Road.
Yesterday, Aberdeen Sheriff Court heard that Davidson realised he was unfit to drive when he returned to the vehicle the following morning.
Fiscal depute, Rebecca Clark, said an employee at the shop first spotted the 34-year-old snoozing inside the Mini at 6.45am on Saturday March 10.
Ms Clark said: “He noticed the accused was in the vehicle with the engine running, and when he went back to check 45 minutes later saw Davidson still in the same position.
“The employee could hear groans coming from the vehicle and formed the opinion that the driver was drunk.
“By 8am the accused was lying in the driver seat with it fully reclined, but when he was approached by the Co-op employee he revved the engine and drove his car away.”
The court heard that Davidson quickly realised the error of his ways and returned to the car park after driving for less than a minute.
But by then the police had been called and the accused was arrested.
Davidson, of Millside Terrace in Peterculter, pled guilty to driving when he had 56 microgrammes of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath – more than double the legal limit of 22 microgrammes.
His lawyer, Liam McAllister said the accused was “deeply frustrated” and “apologetic” about the offence.
Mr McAllister added: “This was no more than a misjudgement on his part.
“He didn’t believe he was over the limit until he got into his car and then tried to sleep it off.”
Sheriff Robert McDonald disqualified Davidson from driving for a year and fined him £400.