A man who drank at least half a dozen middies of beer before driving through Merewether on a mobility scooter, with a blood-alcohol reading more than three times the limit, has pleaded guilty to high range drink driving.
John Gregory Compton was stopped by police on the evening of August 4 after he crashed into a gutter, prompting a concerned member of the public to report the suspected case of drink driving.
He had travelled along Railway Street and crossed Smith Street and Glebe Road.
Compton recorded a positive roadside breath test before he was taken to Newcastle Police Station, where he returned a blood-alcohol reading of 0.154.
The 65-year-old told police he drank six to eight middies of beer at a pub between 3.30pm and 7.10pm, but had not eaten anything during that time.
A statement of agreed facts tendered to Newcastle Local Court on Thursday said Compton was "upset as he believed that he was lawfully able to consume alcohol and drive his scooter as it was not considered a vehicle under the New South Wales Traffic Legislation".
Magistrate Caleb Franklin said there were "clearly some misconceptions" in the community about what was legally classified a motor vehicle and general deterrence needed to be considered.
Magistrate Franklin said the court was increasingly seeing people charged for using electric vehicles while affected by alcohol.
Compton's defence solicitor said he would ask for the matter to be dealt with without conviction when it came time to sentence his client.
Magistrate Franklin ordered Compton to take part in the Traffic Offenders Program before he re-appears before Newcastle court on September 1.
