A BUSINESSWOMAN who drove almost four times over the legal alcohol limit was spared jail yesterday.
Natalie Toomes, 36, of Park Drive, Mirfield, ploughed through a garden fence in her Land Rover Discovery following a barbecue on June 1, a court was told.
Moments before, Toomes, who co-runs The Carpet Mill chain, was found slumped at the wheel with the engine running.
Dewsbury Magistrates were told the vehicle, which was pointing towards the kerb, had been blocking the drive while a friend and a taxi driver attempted to rouse her.
Following her arrest, police said the mother was barely able to stand.
Tests showed she had 129 milligrams of alcohol in 100 millilitres of blood. The legal limit is 35.
Toomes, who admitted the offence, was sentenced to 300 hours unpaid work with an 18 month community order. She was banned from driving for 32 months and recommended to attend a drink driving rehabilitation programme.
Sentencing magistrate Alan Gibson said: “Such a high reading would normally carry a custodial sentence.
“Just to emphasise how serious this matter is, this is a direct alternative to a custodial sentence.”
