KEY POINTS:
A visiting judge has slammed Hastings as having the "worst drink-drivers I have come across", after a day in which he put four people behind bars - one, a man with three times the legal limit, who tried to run two cyclists off the road because he said they had annoyed him.
Judge Thomas Everitt said he had travelled all over the country but had never come across such bad drink-drivers as those he dealt with in the Hastings District Court.
The worst of the offenders sentenced had attempted to run two cyclists off the road simply because they had "pissed him off".
Darryn Edwin Carnell, 43, of Hastings, pleaded guilty to two charges of drink-driving and one charge each of assaulting a police officer, hindering police, and dangerous driving. The charges related to an incident on April 12 after he spotted two cyclists on the road.
He stopped in front of the pair and began verbally abusing them until they passed his car.
Carnell then waited for a short period and sped along the road swerving towards the cyclists, just missing one.
He then locked his brakes and slid 45m, drifting towards them and blocking their path.
At that point, an off-duty police officer who had seen what happened called for back-up and officers who arrived breath-tested Carnell, who returned a reading of 1221 micrograms per litre of breath - more than three times the legal limit of 400mcg/litre.
Four months later, on August 15, Carnell was seen by police driving along the centreline of Norton Rd in Akina at 2.40pm.
He was stopped and found to have a level of 923mcg.
Judge Everitt said the only acceptable sentence was a term of imprisonment to deter Carnell from reoffending, and "to protect the public".
He sentenced the defendant to 18 months' imprisonment and disqualified him from driving for two years.
Carnell was one of four people Judge Everitt sent to jail. The others were:
* Daniel Jac Ruissen, 45, of Hastings, who had pleaded guilty to one charge of drink-driving and another of driving while disqualified, actions the judge described as "grossly irresponsible".
Ruissen was stopped on July 8 and found to have a breath-alcohol level of 1009mcg. Judge Everitt sentenced him to six months' imprisonment and disqualified him from driving for two years starting on April 10 next year.
* Zara Sylvia Monrad of Havelock North, who had pleaded guilty to a charge of driving with a breath-alcohol level of 664mcg - her sixth drink-driving offence.
The 39-year-old factory worker was sentenced to nine months' jail.
As well as the term of imprisonment, Monrad was disqualified from driving for two years.
* Russell James Epps, 49, a shearer, who was sentenced to 20 months' jail and disqualified for five years.
Epps had pleaded guilty to one charge of driving while disqualified and with a breath-alcohol level of 845mcg on August 14 at 11.30pm in Flaxmere.
A month later he was seen tailgating a vehicle and weaving on SH50A at 9.10am.
Stopped, he was breath-tested and found to have an alcohol level of 826mcg.
- HAWKE'S BAY TODAY
