A man accused of driving while impaired should be found innocent because he was standing outside his truck being ill when he was stopped by Police.

That was the argument put forward by lawyer Ken James who represented Shakai Daniels at Magistrates? Court on Friday, telling Magistrate Khamisi Tokunbo that his client was therefore not ?in control? of his truck as the charges against him state.

Daniels, 26, denies having care and control of the vehicle while his ability was impaired by alcohol, and also having care and control of the vehicle when the proportion of alcohol in his blood was in excess of 80 milligrams in 100 millilitres.

Police Constable Aaron Ceazar of Hamilton Police Station told the court how he spoke to the defendant at 12.05 a.m. on June 2, in Middle Road, Paget, because Police had received information about his vehicle.

P.c. Ceazar said he had approached the truck and seen the defendant standing in the centre of the road, leaning over the vehicle with his head down.

Daniels ? who was holding his stomach and said he had stomach pains ? confirmed that he was the driver of the vehicle, and admitted that he had had a couple of Miller beers.

P.c. Ceazar said he observed that the defendant smelt of liquor, and that the key to his truck was in the ignition.

Daniels, of Edgeway Lane, Pembroke, was arrested and failed the alco-analyser test with a reading of 139 milligrams of alcohol in 100 millilitres of blood, when the legal limit is 80.

Sergeant Howard Bekles, of Hamilton Police Station, said Daniels had said he had taken a nutritional supplement for athletes along with a couple of beers, but that he had become unwell and pulled off the road to vomit.

Daniels, in his evidence, said he had driven the truck to the area but that when he became ill he had taken the keys out of the ignition and called his girlfriend to get her to pick him up.

He said he was standing at the back of his vehicle when the Police came by, and added that he had had to pick up his keys and put them into the ignition again to turn the car interior light on in order to find his documents for the Police.

Mr. James argued that because his client was not found in the vehicle, and because he had called his girlfriend to get her to pick him up and taken the keys out of the ignition, he is therefore innocent of the accusation of having care and control of the vehicle while impaired.

Mr. Tokunbo adjourned the case until 9.30 a.m. on October 13, when he will give his verdict. He granted Daniels bail in the meantime.