A man caught drink-driving while almost three times over the limit was referred yesterday to the DUI Court.

Police officers tried to pull over Jamal Simmons’s car after he was spotted past a stop sign on Middle Road, Devonshire, Magistrates’ Court heard.

But when officers turned on their lights and siren Simmons kept driving until he was stopped on Crow Lane, Paget.

Simmons, 39, from St George’s, told police: “I’m sorry I had to make a phone call and I didn’t even hear you behind me.”

Officers arrested Simmons on suspicion of drink-driving and took him to Hamilton Police Station for a breath test.

The test revealed that Simmons had 232 milligrams of alcohol in 100 millilitres of blood. The legal limit is 80mg/100ml.

The incident happened on October 31 last year.

Simmons appeared in court on December 10 and pleaded not guilty to impaired driving and an alternative charge of driving when over the legal alcohol limit.

But he changed his plea to guilty on the impaired driving charge when he returned to court yesterday.

Simone Smith-Bean, for Simmons, asked the court to consider him for the DUI programme.

Senior magistrate Juan Wolffe referred Simmons to the DUI programme and ordered a substance abuse report.

He adjourned the case until today and released Simmons on $500 bail.

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