A CARLISLE woman who was using alcohol to “self-medicate” after being diagnosed with a medical condition has been prosecuted for drink driving.

A probation officer who interviewed Joanne Downie, 35, said she had battled against depression since the age of 15 but following the crash that led to the court case she had sought help and turned her life around.

Downie, of Thomlinson Avenue, Carlisle, pleaded guilty to driving while over the drink drive limit. The court heard that police became involved after she was involved in a two-car crash on a residential street in Carlisle on February 8.

A police investigation quickly established that it was Downie’s car which had crashed into the other vehicle.

Prosecutor George Shelley said: “Miss Downie confirmed that she had been driving at the time of the incident. A request was made for a breath test but prior to this she had said: ‘I am absolutely over the limit; I know that.”

The test confirmed that she was almost three times the limit for alcohol at the time of the accident, the court heard.

Addressing magistrates from the dock of the court, Downie said: “I’ve had a rough year with my mental health. I was using alcohol to mask it. I was basically self-medicating through alcohol.

“But I know that's no excuse at all.”
She added that she was now on the correct medication and did not bother with alcohol. That account was elaborated on by a probation officer who interviewed Downie before she was sentenced.

Over the last three years, said the officer, the defendant’s mental health had deteriorated, with the situation reaching a low point in February. Her problems were added to by a misdiagnosis.

But in the weeks since the accident, Downie had addressed her mental health concerns and was in a much better place. The defendant did not now feel the need to drink as she was on the right medication for her bipolar diagnosis.

Passing sentence, the presiding magistrate noted that Downie was “significantly over” the drink drive limit.

The magistrates banned her for 25 months and imposed £85 costs and a £95 victim surcharge. They offered her a drink drive rehabilitation course which if completed by a deadline will reduce her ban by 25 weeks.

  • Bipolar UK is a national charity that offers support and advice to anybody who is affected by the condition. Help is also available for any person who is in crisis through the Samaritans. You can call them free on 116 123 or via email at jo@samaritans.org