Toyota drug driver caught on the A38 in Kempsey is sentenced

Worcester Magistrates Court heard an off-duty police officer had caught Elizabeth Pounsett in the act, leading to her arrest. 

Pounsett, of Mayfield Road, admitted drug driving when she appeared at Worcester Magistrates Court on Tuesday, (November 21). 

COURT: Elizabeth Pounsett leaving Worcester Magistrates Court (Image: Sam Greenway/Newsquest)Tajinder Kaur, prosecuting, told the court at 1.30pm on August 4 an officer had been on the A38 in Kempsey.

She said the officer noticed Pounsett smoking cannabis out of the driver's side window of her Toyota Corolla leading to him following her. 

"He asked the defendant to come out the vehicle," Miss Kaur said.

"He took possession of the car keys."

KEYS: The offence took the keys of Pounsett's Toyota Corolla (Image: Getty Images)Other officers who were on duty arrived and the defendant admitted smoking a spliff which she had stomped out before being stopped. 

A search also led to police finding pre-rolled cannabis on her. 

After failing a roadside drug test Pounsett was taken to Kidderminster Police Station where a blood test revealed she had eight micrograms of Delta-9-Tetrahydrocannabinol -  a cannabis breakdown - per litre of blood.

Magistrates heard the legal limit is two micrograms. 

Miss Kaur added Pounsett was of previous good character having had no criminal record prior to committing the offence. 

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Omar Hussain, defending, said there had been "no suggestion" her driving had been impaired at all and after being stopped she had co-operated fully with the officers. 

"She uses cannabis for her nerves," the solicitor told magistrates.

"For her issues and anxiety."

Mr Hussain said the inevitable disqualification would have an impact on her work as a carer for the elderly to help them live at home. 

He told the court Pounsett was single and lived a frugal life adding: "She isn't living a lavish lifestyle - she has a simple life helping others."

CASE: Elizabeth Pounsett's case was heard at Worcester Magistrates Court (Image: Newsquest)After short deliberations Richard Poppleton, chairman of the magistrates bench, told Pounsett she would be fined £387. 

Pounsett was disqualified from driving for a year. 

Mr Poppleton told her: "You must not drive whilst disqualified, a conviction which has a harsher sentence."

Pounsett was also ordered to pay costs of £135 and victim surcharge of £155. 

The defendant's offer to pay the total of £677 at a rate of £60 per month was accepted by magistrates.