A drink-driver who was twice the legal limit and took his girlfriend’s car without permission has been sentenced to 200 hours community service.

High Bailiff Jayne Hughes also banned Ashley Graham Kelly, of West Hill Avenue, Castletown, from driving for three years.

Kelly, who is 28, failed a breathalyser test with a reading of 70. The legal limit is 35 - and pleaded guilty to drink-driving, taking a vehicle without consent, having no insurance and having no driving licence.

He was also ordered to retake his test at the end of the ban and attend a drink-driving rehabilitation course.

Prosecuting advocate James Robinson told the court how Kelly parked his partner’s Renault Clio near the roundabout on Poortown Road in Peel after buckling a wheel by clipping the kerb on November 7 at 12.10am.

When police arrived three people were at the scene but Kelly was not.

He arrived shortly afterwards and admitted he was the driver, saying he had left to get his phone so he could call for a recovery vehicle.

roadside test

He failed a roadside breathalyser test and also admitted that he only held an expired provisional licence.

After failing a further test with the reading of 70 at police headquarters Kelly gave a full admission to all the offences in an interview.

The court heard that he has a previous conviction for being drunk and disorderly in August but no other convictions since 2011.

A probation report said that Kelly had recently lost his job, he believed, because of the offences.

Kelly told probation that he had drunk two cans of lager at a house in Peel when one of the house guests had become aggressive.

He said that he had offered to drive them home to their own Peel address to get them away from the situation.

Defence advocate Ian Kermode said: ’Mr Kelly was socialising at his partner’s house and had some cans of Stella.

’One of the people there became aggressive and he made the poor decision to remove him. He clipped the kerb exiting the roundabout.’

Mrs Hughes sentenced Kelly to 200 hours community service for the drink driving offence, 100 for the taking without consent offence, and 40 hours for each of the insurance and licence offences, all to run concurrently.

He was also ordered to pay £125 prosecution costs, which he will pay at a rate of £10 per week.