A woman has been fined £500 after admitting being in charge of a car while under the influence of cannabis but has been spared a ban.

Megan Louise Kermode had previously pleaded not guilty to the charge but on Thursday, changed her plea to guilty.

Magistrates also endorsed the 23-year-old’s licence with 10 penalty points, to add to five points she had received previously in 2021 for driving without insurance.

However, defence advocate Ian Kermode successfully argued that there were exceptional circumstances which meant that his client should not be banned under the totting-up process, namely that it would interfere with her employment.

Kermode was also fined £50 for possessing cannabis, which she had previously admitted, and ordered to pay £300 prosecution costs, due to work done for a pre-trial review after the initial denial of the motoring-related offence.

Prosecuting advocate Barry Swain told the court that, on October 22 at 8pm, police were on patrol at Niarbyl Beach car park when they came across Kermode sitting in the driver’s seat of a Honda CR-V.

They reported a smell of cannabis and a drug wipe test proved positive for the class B drug.

After being arrested and taken to police headquarters, Kermode gave a sample of blood, which later produced a result of 6.3.

The legal limit for cannabis is two.

A small amount of the drug, weighed at 0.9 grams and valued by police at £18, was also found in her possession.

Defence advocate Mr Kermode entered a basis of plea for his client, in which the defendant said she had not smoked cannabis prior to driving to Niarbyl, but had then smoked a small amount in the car park.

She said that she had a friend with her, who had not used the drug, and who was going to drive the car afterwards.

Mr Kermode handed in letters of reference for his client and a letter of apology from the defendant herself.

The advocate asked for credit to be given for the guilty pleas and said that, if his client was banned from driving it would interfere with her employment as she was responsible for deliveries, collecting stock, and obtaining raw materials.

Mr Kermode said that driving was an integral part of the defendant’s work.

Magistrates told Kermode, who lives at Cronk y Berry in Douglas, that the points would go on her licence, bringing her total to 15, but that they would not disqualify her.

The 10 points will remain on her licence for five years.

She will pay the fines and costs at a rate of £80 per month.