A Southampton man claimed in Magistrates' Court yesterday that he was not in fact driving a car while impaired - he was parked in it.

Magistrate Will Francis fined him $1,200 and disqualified him from driving all vehicles for one year, however, after hearing that Earl Winston Lewis was parked after causing an accident which could have been fatal.

Lewis, 33, of Riviera Road in Southampton, was arrested by Police at 3.30 a.m. on June 16 in Devonshire.

Police apprehended Lewis after an accident on North Shore Road in Smith's Parish which was caused when Lewis drove into the opposite lane, nearly leading to a head-on collision with another car.

Crown counsel Wayne Caines read from a Police report which stated that Lewis was unsteady on his feet, smelled of liquor, and had two open bottles of Heineken in his car. When asked by Police if he was under the influence, Lewis replied: "No, does it look like I'm drinking?"

A breathalyser test revealed that the alcohol level in Lewis's blood was 160 milligrams of alcohol per 100 millilitres of blood, twice the legal limit.

"What if that other car had been a cycle?" asked Mr. Francis. "Talk to me about the liquor in your blood. That caused what could have been a fatal accident.

"This is a serious accident, a very serious matter," said Mr. Francis before sentencing Lewis, who pleaded guilty to being in charge of the car while impaired.

"You are fortunate - I could have slapped you in prison."