The North Yorkshire Police force in the UK said this week that it received an unusual call, the kind its officers might never have imagined they would hear. A man in the area called in to report a drunk driver on the road, and the drunk driver was the caller himself.
The 52-year-old man who made the confession was from the Greater Manchester area, and called 999 (the U.K.’s equivalent to 911) just before noon on Monday, February 12. The constabulary reports that the man told them he was driving drunk, and didn’t know what he was doing.
“Well it’s not every day that this happens… a suspected drink driver dobs themselves in to our Force Control Room,” the North Yorkshire Police wrote in a Facebook post. “The man went on to tell the 999 police call handler that he was in the Knaresborough area and that he had a heavy weekend. The Force Control Room immediately sent roads policing officers to the area.”
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Although we never condone driving while under the influence, the man on the phone appears to have been quite sweet about it. When asked for more details about where he was, he helped the dispatcher, allowing officers to find his black van that was parked on the side of the road in just 15 minutes.
Neverthelss, he was also quite soused. The police report that the man blew 123 micrograms per 100 milliliters of breath during an evidential breath-test at the police station. That may not mean much to American readers, but it’s about three-and-a-half times over the legal limit in England.
As a result, he was arrested on suspicion of drunk driving, and has since been bailed to appear in Magistrates’ Court on Thursday, February 29. Although telling on yourself doesn’t quite make up for getting behind the wheel while intoxicated, we can’t help but hope that the court shows some mercy on the driver for at least being smart enough to pull over and ask for help.
