Drunk Derbyshire driver lay in front of car at Co-op for “several hours”

Shawn Mitchell, 46, had driven into the loading bay of an Alfreton Co-op store after “two or three” failed attempts to manoeuvre in the car park.

Chesterfield Magistrates Court heard on July 22 around 3.30pm police were alerted with concerns about Mitchell’s Audi A4 at the Swanwick Road store.

Prosecutor Sian Young said: “Concerned staff locked the vehicle into the loading bay to prevent it causing any harm.

“Mr Mitchell got out of the car and lay in front of the car, where he remained for several hours.

“The police arrived around 6pm and observed Mr Mitchell clearly in a state of intoxication, unable to stand unaided.”

After refusing to provide a roadside breath test Mitchell later gave a sample of 86 micrograms of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath in police custody.

The court heard he had five previous convictions for seven offences - including three previous drink driving incidents.

Mitchell’s solicitor said her client had been suffering with his mental health following the loss of two friends in “very sad circumstances”.

She said: “He has come to the realisation he has trauma from his childhood - on this particular day he and his partner had argued and she told him to leave.

“In a police interview he felt like he had imploded - he couldn’t cope and was having a mental health crisis.

“As someone who has previously been in the military he has had assistance from an organisation - he wants to get help for his issues.”

The solicitor told magistrates her client suffered a number of physical health issues including extreme sleep apnea - requiring a machine to help him breathe at night.

She said: “There are concerns about how these conditions would be managed in a custodial setting.

“He is aware he is in a difficult position, given his previous convictions he knows he faces a lengthy ban.”

Mitchell, of Ash Court, Alfreton, admitted drink driving.

Magistrates agreed to adjourn the defendant’s sentence pending a report from the probation service - he was handed an interim driving ban and bailed unconditionally.

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