A Smith’s man suspected of driving while impaired has been banned from the roads for three years for refusing to give a sample of breath for analysis.

Ondrey Ascento, 50, was stopped by Police conducting laser checks on the Causeway in St George’s on May 5 after they clocked him speeding at 63kph.

Magistrates’ Court heard yesterday that the officers observed that Ascento was unsteady on his feet and when they asked him if he had been drinking, he said he had had “a few”, but refused a breath test.

In court, Ascento pleaded guilty to speeding and failing to provide a breath sample. The Crown offered no evidence on the alternative charge of driving while impaired.

Magistrate Khamisi Tokunbo fined Ascento $1,000 for failing to provide a breath sample and $300 for speeding.

He disqualified Ascento, who has a previous driving conviction of a similar nature dating back to last year, from driving all vehicles for three years — the mandatory length for a second impaired driving offence committed within two years.

In another matter, 24-year-old Dante Richardson was banned from the roads for 18 months after he pleaded guilty to driving while over the legal blood-alcohol limit when he appeared in court yesterday.

The court heard that Richardson, of Hamilton Parish, was involved in a two-vehicle collision on Stowe Hill in Paget on May 9.

Prosecutor Maria Sofianos said that Richardson was travelling from Middle Road to the Lane, when he made a u-turn on the one-way street, began riding against the flow of traffic and collided with an oncoming vehicle.

He was taken to Hamilton Police Station where it was determined that he had 190 milligrams of alcohol in 100 millilitres of blood — more than twice the legal limit of 80mg.

In court, Richardson pleaded guilty to driving while over the blood-alcohol limit and the Crown offered no evidence on the alternative charge of driving while impaired.

Mr Tokunbo fined Richardson $1,200 and disqualified him from driving for 18 months.

Also in court, Carlos Simas, of Warwick, was banned from driving for 12 months for failing to provide a sample of blood for analysis.

The 32-year-old was stopped by police officers after they saw his car repeatedly swerving into the opposite lane on Front Street, Pembroke, on May 21.

Officers noted that Simas’ speech was slurred, his eyes were glazed and he appeared unsteady on his feet, but he refused to provide a sample of blood for analysis.

In court, Simas pleaded guilty and said he refused to provide the sample because he knew he was over the limit. The Crown offered no evidence on the alternative charge of driving while impaired.

Mr Tokunbo handed Simas an $800 fine and banned him from driving for a year.

In a separate matter, 45-year-old Kirkland Butterfield was also disqualified from driving for 12 months.

Butterfield, of Pembroke, pleaded guilty to failing to provide a sample of breath after he was stopped on North Shore Road in Devonshire on December 22 last year.

The court heard that police officers stopped Butterfield after they observed his car swerving into the eastbound lane as he was travelling west at high speed.

Butterfield was taken to Hamilton Police Station, where he refused to comply with a demand for a sample of breath.

Butterfield was given an $800 fine by Mr Tokunbo, who also disqualified him from driving for a year.

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