[A] MAN who flouted a judge’s order by drink-driving has come “within a whisker” of being sent to prison.
Shaun Barry Trueman, 49, was handed a suspended jail term at Carlisle Crown Court last December. This followed a violent assault on his estranged wife, who had been found in a Whitehaven street “covered in blood”.
But Trueman broke the law again on September 10. Police found he was more than twice the legal drink-drive limit while behind the wheel of a white van in Workington just after 2am. That crime, which he admitted, put him in breach of the suspended 10-month prison sentence.
He appeared at the crown court again today (FRI). The Honourable Mr Justice Turner heard Trueman – previously of Workington – had since moved to Hathershaw Road in Oldham, and completed part of the previous punishment. He had committed the unplanned excess alcohol offence having earlier been warned his vehicle might be damaged.
Mr Justice Turner imposed a six-month alcohol treatment requirement for the breach. He also fined Trueman £180 and banned him from driving for 18 months for the latest crime.
“You were within a whisker of serving a custodial term,” the judge told him.