Breath test driver hit policeman when stopped in Stacksteads (From Lancashire Telegraph)
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Breath test driver hit policeman when stopped in Stacksteads
4:27pm Thursday 14th March 2013 in News
AN HGV driver hit a police inspector in the face after he was stopped in his car and asked for a breath test, a court heard.
Father-of-two Montgomery Byrne, 28, was pulled over due to his “erratic driving” and continued hitting out even when handcuffed, catching the officer in the face, Burnley magistrates were told.
Byrne claimed he believed he was entitled to refuse the test. He has now lost his licence and his job after the offences in Stacksteads. The defendant, of Acre Mill Road, Stacksteads, admitted failing to provide a specimen and resisting police. He must pay £205 in fines, victim surcharge and costs and was banned for a year.
The court was told Byrne had previous convictions for disqualified driving, but had not been in trouble since 2008.
Michael Lea, for Byrne, said he was a HGV driver for a scaffolding company. He would lose his job as a result of the conviction.
He said: "The impact upon him will be immense.”
