A 35-year-old graphic designer has been spared jail for drink-driving after telling the courts she was trying to escape her ‘Jekyll and Hyde’ abusive boyfriend.
Debbie Minogue, from Manchester, was spotted manoeuvring her car in a pub car park after drinking rose wine at a birthday party. The police sergeant who arrested her described her as “angry and obstructive”, and she had initially said she had been in a fight with another woman at the pub in Prestwich, near Bury.
In court, however, Minogue said she had been trying to get away from her partner Robert Jones, who she claimed had punched her in the face and behaved like “pure evil” during an argument. She said she was seeking refuge in the car, but reversed out of the parking space after Jones left her “in fear of her life” by jumping on the bonnet.
The incident took place on April 16 after Minogue and Jones went out to celebrate his birthday, along with his brother Craig.
Police were called at 7pm after reports of a “domestic matter” and the couple were found arguing in the car park.
GMP’s sergeant Mark Jackson said: “I saw a man leaning on the bonnet of a VW Beetle. He was pointing at the vehicle and trying to stop the car from moving away.
“I blocked her one way and she tried to get around me but my colleague’s police van blocked her off, so she reversed back into a parking space.
“She got out of the car, she smelt strongly of intoxicants, she was slurring her words, her eyes were glazed over and she was unstable on her feet.
“I asked her to provide a sample of breath and she was angry and obstructive at first, arguing with me, but then she complied.
“She seemed very upset. She told us she had been in a fight with a female at a pub nearby. I sent my officers to investigate and they learned that nothing had happened.
“She was protected from this male, so if she wanted to tell us what happened she could have done. I am aware she told officers once she arrived at the police station.
“At the time there were pedestrians around, many people were watching us. Numerous people in the bars nearby and many were walking around the area so there was potential danger she could have hit them.
“The car itself was not in a driveable condition. The front tyre was punctured. It wasn’t fit to be on the road.
“I do understand that victims of domestic violence don’t tend to tell us everything initially. But I didn’t see evidence of swelling to the face when I arrived although my colleagues at the station did see swelling to her eye.
“She told officers at the station ‘I just wanted to get in the car to get away from him’.”
Minogue admitted drink-driving to Manchester Magistrates, but argued “special reasons” why she should not receive the mandatory ban. She was found to have 87mcg alcohol per 100ml breath when tested at the roadside, and then found to have 70mcg when tested at the police station later. The legal limit is 35mcg.
Testifying in court, she said: “I had been in a relationship with Robert for a few months and he’d never been violent to me before. But he has a short temper and is sort of Jekyll and Hyde. He has paranoid schizophrenia and doesn’t take his medication so you never know what to expect.
“I split up with him six weeks ago but he is still harassing me. The police have been called around eight times because of how he’s been. This was my first time meeting Craig, Roberts brother. We were going to sleep over at his flat which wasn’t far from the pub.
“Robert was drinking quite fast. I drank two-and-a-half large glasses of rosè. I went outside for a cigarette and Craig joined me. I didn’t know, but Robert was looking for me. He came out from the other exit, walked up to me and punched me right on the cheekbone without warning.
“It knocked me to my feet. I was in total shock, he was like pure evil.
“He and Craig had a scuffle about what he had done to me, then Craig went inside and Robert started following me around, taunting me and arguing with me. I just wanted to get away from him, I was terrified. I saw a couple walking past and shouted to them to call the police.
“He was putting me in fear for my life, I just wanted to be safe. I got into the car and locked the doors. It wasn’t my intention to drive at that point, I just sat there because I was away from him.
“He then came up to my car and started banging on the windscreen. He climbed onto the bonnet and I just thought, I’ve got to get somewhere safe, then I can order a taxi.
“I thought he was going to smash my windscreen and I thought he was going to get me. I was only going to drive to a safe location and order a taxi. When the police arrived I had already reversed with him still on the bonnet, so I just parked back into the space. I was totally shocked and upset, so I may have come across as aggressive.
“I couldn’t go back into the pub for help because people were watching and nobody was doing anything. I didn’t tell the police at first because he was watching me, he could hear what I was saying and I was scared of what might happen if I told them. I told the police I had been in a fight with a woman because I didn’t want to grass him up, and I was worried about the repercussions.
“I just wanted to leave. I was honestly so scared and I didn’t intend to drive at first, it was only when he climbed on my bonnet.
“I was being selfish and only thinking of myself, but I needed to get away because I knew he was going to hurt me again.
“Even that couple who called the police were scared of him, he’s a big guy.
“I can only guess that they rang the police, but they didn’t do anything to help me other than that. It all happened so fast. I was worried about myself. I just wanted to be safe.”
Minogue’s solicitor, Stephen Connor, said: “She was trying to get away. She had been attacked. She didn’t intend to drive and when she did drive, it was a very very short distance that was driven.
“When members of the public walked by she asked for help but nobody came to offer assistance.
“It’s all well and good speculating what she should have done in that situation, but she had been punched by someone she thought she could trust. She wanted to get to safety and nobody offered her help.’
Magistrates accepted Minogue’s explanation for her drink-driving, instead endorsing her driving licence with nine penalty points and ordering her to pay £255 costs. Chairman of the bench Prof. Craig Harris told her: “We accept that you wanted to get to safety. Police were called to a domestic incident involving you and your partner and we accept he did hit you.
“We accept that it was never your intention to drive home. We also accept that you asked for help. You only drove a very short distance and this was an emergency.”
About Carl Millar
Carl Millar is a highly respected and experienced drink driving solicitor who is the principal of Millars Solicitors.
Carl has been a specialist in road traffic law for many years and represents clients from all walks of life and all over the Country. He is well known for the dogged defending of his clients and robust cross examination of police officers and exert witnesses.
With a wealth of expertise in motoring law Carl is well placed to provide advice over the phone and deal with all road traffic matters in a calm and professional way.
Getting in contact with Carl and Millars Solicitors is really easy. You can call him FREE on 0800 999 5535, or click here to send a confidential message.
