A drink driver who crashed his car with four passengers on board represented himself when he appeared in Orange Local Court for sentencing on Thursday.
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Phillip Leigh Beere, 36, of Brial Street Boorowa pleaded guilty to a single charge of mid-range drink driving.
According to court documents, Beere was travelling east on Bathurst Road in Orange at 1.40am on May 26, 2023.
He was briefly distracted as he reached a bend and did not turn in time.
The front left side of his vehicle hit the back right side of an Isuzu DMax, which was parked in front of the address.
Beere continued for a short distance before stopping.
He and his passengers got out of the vehicle and he and two of the passengers waited with the owners of the DMax until police arrived a short time later.
Beere produced a positive breath test and was arrested and taken to Orange Police Station where on analysis he returned a reading of 0.106.
He told police he consumed about eight schooners of full-strength beer at the Royal Hotel Orange and finished the last drink about 20 minutes before driving.
Beere told the court that he works as a machine operator driving diggers and dozers but doesn't need a driver's licence for work.
"You just need nationally recognised tickets," he said.
Magistrate David Day weighed up Beere's income when considering.
"He does have prior convictions in the deep dark past," Mr Day said.
"After drinking he shouldn't have driven."
Mr Day convicted Beere, fined him $880 and disqualified his driver's licence for three months and gave him a 12-month interlock order.
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