7:58 am, January 12, 2023
A young car salesman is fighting to save his career following an arrest for drink-driving, which resulted in his licence being taken away.
Mark Jordan is facing an uncertain future after being pulled over by cops early on December 10.
The 19-year-old currently works for a dealership in Inverness but is now likely to lose the position as a result of his arrest.
The teenager, of Batchen Street, Forres, was more than three times the drink-drive limit when his grey Vauxhall was pulled over, with police saying he smelled strongly of alcohol.
The youngster, who also had bloodshot eyes, accepted he had made a ‘terrible error of judgment’, a hearing at Elgin Sheriff Court was told last week.
Fiscal depute Sharon Ralph told the court: ‘Officers were on mobile patrol on Grantown Road when they noted the vehicle being driven in front of them. They decided to carry out a routine check.
‘On speaking with the driver they noted that his eyes were bloodshot and he was smelling of alcohol.’
Jordan’s solicitor said his client hadn’t drunk alcohol for several hours before his arrest and was under the impression he had ‘slept it off’.
However, a test at Elgin Police Station found him to have 78 micrograms of alcohol per 100 litres of blood, the Press and Journal reported.
Defence agent Graham Mann said: ‘He accepts entirely that this was a terrible error of judgment.
‘He had been drinking earlier. He had had a sleep and was under the wrongful impression that he had slept it off.
‘It is unclear whether he will lose his job as a result of this.’
After all submissions were made, Jordan was handed a £640 fine and banned from the road for 15 months,
Sheriff Olga Pasportnikov said the ban could be reduced by 25 per cent if he completes a drink-driver rehabilitation scheme.
Main image: Elgin Sheriff Court (Google Street View)
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