his licence after he produced a letter from his employer.

Richard Southwell of Happy Talk Lane Paget, was stopped by Police officers after midnight on February 28.

Police Prosecutor Sgt. Phil Taylor said officers on laser check duty on Crow Lane noticed the defendant riding very slowly and swerving on his motorbike.

He then rode into a parking lot but was unable to turn the cycle around. He was also unable to put the bike on its stand.

Southwell told the Police he had drunk a few beers and agreed to give a breath sample.

The analyser showed 165 millilitres of alcohol in 100 millilitres of blood.

The legal limit is 80 millilitres of alcohol in 100 millilitres of blood.

Magistrate Will Francis fined Southwell $450 and disqualified him from all vehicles for 12 months.

Southwell then said he needed to retain mobility because he kept irregular business hours and often travelled to meetings around the Island.

But Mr. Francis said he did not see a car as a necessary tool of the man's trade.

However, Southwell then gave the magistrate a letter from his employer outlining reasons why he needed his own transportation.

After reading the letter Mr. Francis changed his earlier sentence and said he did not want the man to lose his job.

The magistrate fined Southwell $600 and disqualified him from motorcycles for two years.

Mr. Francis also warned the defendant that the courts may not be able to use their discretion in impaired driving cases in the future.

"The authorities may feel that regardless of a person's employment... they will lose all driving licenses,'' he said.

"It may be public policy here soon.''