Lisburn woman charged with drink driving after being detained by member of the public in the M&S carpark at Sprucefield
A Lisburn woman has been banned from the roads for three years after being charged with drink driving.
She appeared before Lisburn Magistrates Court charged with driving with excess alcohol in breath after she was detained by a member of the public at the car park at Marks and Spencer at Sprucefield.
The court heard that on September 16, 2026 at 5.10pm, police received a report of a suspected drink driver on the Hillsborough Road in Lisburn.
It was reported that a black BMW was seen driving erratically and mounting the kerbs.
The reporting person then updated the police, stating they had followed the vehicle to the Marks and Spencer Sprucefield car park and had detained the defendant who was attempting to leave the vehicle.
Police noted the defendant, Mary Ellen McPeake, aged 68, whose address was given as Highfields Grove, Lisburn, was unsteady on her feet and that there was a strong smell of alcohol.
Officers also observed empty wine bottles in the defendant’s vehicle.
The defendant failed to give a suitable breath sample and was conveyed to custody, where a breath test gave an evidential reading of 63 micrograms of alcohol per 100 millilitres of breath, the legal limit being 35 micrograms of alcohol per 100 millilitres of breath.
A defence lawyer said: “This is a lady who fully admits she is an alcoholic. She had been sober for some time and suffered a relapse.”
District Judge Rosie Watters commented: “It is something she will struggle with her whole life.”
Ms Watters disqualified the defendant from driving for three years and imposed a fine of £250, as well as a £!5 offender’s levy.