Elliott Thomas Sanders and his partner were travelling in a Holden Rodeo that was stopped by police for a random breath test on Fitzroy Street shortly before 3am on May 26 this year.

Sanders was charged with mid-range drink-driving and had his licence suspended on the spot after registering a blood alcohol reading of 0.098.

Sanders’ solicitor told the court Sanders and his girlfriend had been celebrating at her place the night before when she fell over and cut her arm, an injury for which she received six stitches at Dubbo Base Hospital.

He said Sanders later accepted he should have contacted his father to drive them to hospital but decided against it because his father had just been released from hospital.

The prosecution pointed out that it was on the way back from hospital, not on the way there, that Sanders was stopped, meaning that it “changed things somewhat” in terms of the urgency to get to hospital for treatment, and a taxi would have been a viable option.

Magistrate Andrew Eckhold took into account that since Sanders had been charged he had completed a traffic offenders’ program and several references had been tendered to the court to suggest he was of ‘good character’.

But he said Sanders had made a ‘bad error of judgment’.

“You are at the start of your adult life, but you are an adult with adult responsibilities, and mid-range drink-driving exposes you to endangering other people,” he said.

“I hope you have taken the opportunity to learn something from the traffic offenders’ program, and that you will spread the message to your friends about some of the (bad) consequences that you have seen can result from drink driving.”

Magistrate Eckhold sentenced Sanders to a two-year good behavior bond without conviction and he was also ordered to pay $83 in court costs.