![The top of the Bathurst Courthouse building, where Kirra Chapman was sentenced. Picture by James Arrow The top of the Bathurst Courthouse building, where Kirra Chapman was sentenced. Picture by James Arrow](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/5QSV2wJYJi8ZgVyWibkV7A/1a08cd66-622a-4b6b-bc05-c2949ecd83b2.jpg/r0_0_7728_5152_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
AN EARLY morning dash around Kelso came to end at a police station for a woman, who got behind the wheel shortly after drinking alcohol.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
or signup to continue reading
Kirra Chapman, 26, of Patterson Place, Kelso was convicted in Bathurst Local Court on June 14, 2023 of low-range drink-driving.
Police said they were patrolling Kelso about 3.10am on May 30, 2023 when they saw a Ford Focus with a red 'P' plate heading north along Bannerman Crescent, court papers said.
Police followed the vehicle - driven by Chapman - onto Bonnor Street and then into Boyd Street, where she turned into the Foodworks carpark.
After stopping Chapman in the parking lot, police gave her a roadside breath test which came back positive for alcohol.
"Kirra, have you been drinking tonight?" one of the officers asked.
"Not since earlier," Chapman replied.
She was arrested and taken to Bathurst Police Station, where she gave a second positive test for alcohol of 0.073.
Sentence
Chapman was seated before the court while her Aboriginal Legal Service solicitor Usman Naveed said her decision to drive was something - on reflection - "she shouldn't have done".
Magistrate D Pearce said in reply Chapman's driving record was "not particularly unsavoury".
Chapman was disqualified from driving for three months and fined $500.
Reading this on mobile web? Download our news app. It's faster, easier to read and we'll send you alerts for breaking news as it happens. Download in the Apple Store or Google Play.