A North Haven woman who refused two roadside breath tests while "well affected" by alcohol has been jailed for a year.
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Deborah Anne Lawrence, 63, pleaded guilty to refusing to submit to a breath analysis on two separate occasions, and driving while suspended.
She appeared before Magistrate Darryl Pearce in Port Macquarie Local Court on June 7, 2023, where she was sentenced to a 12 months full-time jail sentence.
Court documents show Lawrence was driving along Bridge Street in North Haven on March 17, 2023, about 10.55am.
Witnesses observed her attempting a u-turn, however her car mounted the gutter and nature strip which caused the front passenger wheel to deflate.
The woman got out of the car, with witnesses describing her as "unsteady on her feet" and "slurring her words".
She attempted to get back into the driver's seat, before the two witnesses stopped her and called the police.
Officers arrived about 11.50am and spoke to the witnesses. They observed Lawrence lying on the nature strip next to her car.
When officers attempted to administer a breath test, she refused.
She was placed under arrest and taken to Laurieton Police Station, where she continued not to comply with directions and refused to answer questions.
She was suspended from driving and issued a court attendance notice.
About 1.25am on March 18, police were patrolling Ocean Drive at Laurieton and noticed Lawrence's vehicle travelling along the road.
Police followed the vehicle for a short distance and indicated for the driver to stop.
Officers observed Lawrence to be in the driver's seat and she was submitted to a breath test which returned a positive result of 0.190.
She was arrested and taken to Laurieton Police Station where she was subjected to a second breath analysis. She only blew into the machine for a short amount of time and a result was not able to be registered.
Court documents show she refused to answer officer's questions, showed an "extreme disliking" of police and was "belligerent" towards them.
She was charged with the further offences and issued a court attendance notice.
Sentencing remarks
Lawrence's lawyer Douglas Hannaway asked Magistrate Pearce to consider a conviction without a jail sentence and said it's "not necessary" for an Intensive Corrections Order.
Magistrate Pearce disagreed and described the offences as "very serious".
"The refusal for a breath analysis test carries the same penalty as a high-range drink-driving offence," he said.
"You abused police and... [your actions] placed at risk other people's lives who use the highways.
"And the next day you did it again while suspended [from driving]."
Magistrate Pearce said the sentence imposed must act as a deterrent to Lawrence and others in the community who might consider committing similar offences.
"There is the interest of public safety which is very high in consideration," he said.
"A full-time jail sentence is appropriate."
Lawrence has been convicted and sentenced to a 12 months full-time jail sentence for the offences with a non-parole period of nine months.
She is also disqualified from driving for nine months and an interlock order has been issued for a period of 24 months.
