A MOTORCYCLIST has lost his licence for 15 months after he recorded a blood alcohol reading more than three times over the legal limit.
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Brent Stacey, 48, appeared in the Bendigo Magistrates' Court on Monday where he pleaded guilty to the drink driving charge.
The court heard on the evening of April 4 this year, police intercepted Stacey riding a black Harvey-Davidson motorcycle in Bridgewater.
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A preliminary breath test showed the presence of alcohol so Stacey underwent a second test, which provided a blood alcohol reading of 0.158.
Stacey initially told police he only had one pot of beer at a Bendigo pub. He later admitted to drinking four bottles of Heineken beer and four vodkas at home.
Defence lawyer Jeremy Pytel told the court Stacey thought he would be at 0.00 because he consumed the alcohol at least 12 hours before he rode his motorbike.
Mr Pytel also submitted the testing device had been faulty.
But Magistrate Sharon McRae told the lawyer if his client was pleading guilty to the offence, then he needed to accept the reading was accurate.
Mr Pytel conceded that Stacey accepted responsibility for the offending.
The defence lawyer submitted that Stacey should not be fined or receive an extensive driver disqualification period because his livelihood depended on his licence.
Ms McRae accepted there would be some hardship but said the mandatory loss of licence period was 15 months.
The magistrate said Stacey had consumed an "extraordinary amount" of alcohol, which led to the "extremely high" reading.
Ms McRae said she was not satisfied that any punishment less than a fine was appropriate.
Stacey was convicted and fined $500. His licence was cancelled and he was disqualified from driving for 15 months. That disqualification period started on April 4.
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