A deputy head teacher at a leading private school crashed into a parked car and reversed into a lamppost before falling drunkenly out of her car and smashing her face.
Sozzled Kilgraston School junior head Dana Cooper needed stitches in her chin after staggering out of her badly damaged car and falling over in front of police. A court heard that Cooper refused to give a breath specimen to police after they found her car stuck on a raised kerb close to another secondary school.
Copper told police: "I believe I have reasonable excuse. I want to see a doctor and a lawyer." The 44-year-old St Andrews University graduate admitted a series of driving offences when she appeared in the dock at Perth Sheriff Court on Friday.
She admitted fleeing the scene of an accident in Station Road, Dunning, when she crashed her Volvo V40 into a parked Nissan Juke and left it damaged. She admitted leaving the scene of a second crash around ten miles away after she reversed at speed into a lamppost and damaged it before driving off.
Cooper admitted failing to stop at the scene of the second incident in Augustus Way, close to Bertha Park School and sports arena, on 15 December last year. She admitted failing to provide a preliminary breath specimen when she was in charge of a vehicle in Mercer Way, Perth, and failing to co-operate again at police HQ in Dundee.
Fiscal depute Sarah Wilkinson told the court that Cooper's rampage covered several miles across Perthshire and lasted around an hour before her car became stuck. She told the court: "The accused is owner and registered keeper of the Volvo V40. At 9.15pm on Thursday witnesses were within their address when they heard a loud bang outside.
"Mr Cakebread looked out and did not see any damage so he thought no more of it. Mr Riley looked out and saw the vehicle swerving on the road out of Dunning. He went outside to check. He observed extensive damage to the nearside front of Mr Cakebread's vehicle. He went to inform him and police were contacted.
"At 9.45pm the Volvo was recorded on private CCTV at Bertha Park travelling towards a dead end. It was seen reversing back down the road at speed and striking a lamppost. She corrected the car's direction and continued to reverse at speed out of sight. At 10.05pm police were in Bertha Park when they found the accused within her vehicle.
"The vehicle was observed to have extensive damage to its front nearside. It was sitting with its front offside tyre over a freshly laid kerbstone, rendering the vehicle immoveable. As police officers approached, the accused exited the driver's side and fell to the ground. She appeared intoxicated and smelled strongly of alcohol.
"She had suffered a cut to the underside of her chin as a result of the fall. She was apologising repeatedly. Officers required a breath sample but she refused to engage in the process."
Ms Wilkinson told the court that Cooper was taken to divisional police HQ in Dundee and again refused to give a specimen shortly before midnight. "She refused, stating she wanted to see a doctor. She was cautioned and charged. She was left in the care of custody staff when a nurse assessed her chin."
Cooper, from Strathallan Bank, Forgandenny, was transferred to Ninewells Hospital in Dundee for tests and had a series of stitches placed in her chin. The teacher's solicitor told the court that she had struck her head on the inside of the vehicle during the first collision, but had driven on despite being concussed.
Sheriff William Wood imposed an interim driving ban and told Cooper that sentence would be deferred for the preparation of background reports. He said: "It seems to me quite a serious matter. I think I need to get a report. I'm very concerned about the persistence of the conduct and the damage caused. It was not just once, but twice."
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