Orange Local Court heard on Monday the 48-year-old man was driving his ute last month when a member of the public called police to report that the vehicle had been seen swerving “all over the road”, police facts said. 

At 1.05pm on April 16, Ewers was spotted travelling north on Cargo Road but he was later reported to police by members of the public, who had seen him drinking from the bottle while driving, in Woolworths car park in Sale Street, Orange. 

Police attended the car park and saw the bottle of red wine in the brown paper bag leaning on the passenger seat and a second bottle of beer in the foot well but Ewers was not located. 

An hour later Ewers returned to his vehicle and drove away but police followed him and breath tested him in Kite Street. 

He returned a blood-alcohol reading of 0.116, 

Ewers represented himself and told magistrate, Terry Lucas, he was a full-time carer for his 86-year-old mother and had let her down when he chose to drink and drive. 

“I know I done a dreadful thing that day towards me mum because I am her carer,” he said. 

Ewers completed the traffic offenders intervention program and said he had learned a great deal from the course and promised he would not drink and drive again. 

“I live in a small country town called Grenfell and me mum needs transport to medical facilities,” Ewers said. 

“I was wondering if you could give me a fine or just take points off.”

However Mr Lucas said had no choice but to disqualify Ewers from driving but chose to disqualify him for the minimum period of time of six months.