[A] DRINK-driver who careered into a car containing a toddler during an early morning joyride has been spared immediate prison.
Provisional licence holder Nathan Dunstan, 23, stole a Vauxhall Astra to buy alcohol after a group of partygoers ran dry in Siddick, near Workington.
At around 8-30am on June 23, he “flew” up Workington’s Hall Brow on the wrong side of the road at school run time. On the A595, Dunstan then drove more dangerously, tailgating a car containing three generations of the same family – including a two-year-old – before crashing into it.
After travelling back to Siddick, he was seen by the Astra owner to be wearing a leopard-print dressing gown, and found by police to be over the drink-drive limit.
At Carlisle Crown Court today (MON), Dunstan, of Sycamore Road, Maryport, admitted six motoring crimes. These included drink-driving, dangerous driving and aggravated vehicle taking.
Having heard he had taken major steps to mend his ways, Judge Barbara Forrester suspended a four-month jail term for 18 months.
Dunstan must complete a rehabilitation requirement, unpaid work and a “thinking skills” course, and serve a two-year driving ban.
