Boozed-up Sheffield crash biker told “he really should know better”

Stephen Denton's right leg was fractured in two places after the collision on Handsworth Road at 11pm on January 25, prosecutor Brian Outhwaite said.

The other car drove off and had not been traced, Sheffield Crown Court heard on Wednesday.

A test revealed Denton had 172 mcgs of alcohol in 100 mls of blood, when the legal limit is 80 mcgs.

Denton has previous convictions for driving with excess alcohol in 2004, 2006 and 2013, and failing to provide a specimen for analysis in 2009.

Andrew Swabey, mitigating, said: "He has had the good sense to enter his guilty plea at the first opportunity.

"He was at home drinking alcohol and foolishly decided to go out on his motorbike to buy more drink. He had no good reason for going out that night.

"He will accept that drink is a problem. His record is littered with drink-related convictions.

"He lost his mother and father at a relatively young age and he has drifted into alcohol to cope. He is ashamed.

"He knows that he has messed up and that he wants to make amends. There is a realistic prospect of his rehabilitation given the gaps in his offending.

"This is a problem that has been bubbling away for a while. At 33 years of age he really should know better.

"The public would certainly benefit from him receiving support and not appearing again in court."

Denton, of Water Slacks Drive, Woodhouse, Sheffield, pleaded guilty to driving dangerously and driving over the limit.

Judge Peter Kelson QC said Denton was the sole victim, even though the other car was in breach of the law.

He received nine months, suspended for two years, and he was banned from driving for three years, which is the minimum period the law allows. The judge also ordered him to attend 25 rehabilitation days. Denton will have to take the extended test before he rides another motorbike.

Read the latest cases from Sheffield Crown Court here.

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