A Barrow lollipop lady drove to work at her crossing when she was almost four-times the drink drive limit.
Laura Burns, 45, of Cheviot Green, Barrow-in-Furness, admitted driving a motor vehicle when the amount of alcohol in her breath exceeded the prescribed limit when when she appeared at South Cumbria Magistrates' Court last week.
This is an offence contrary to section 5(1) of the Road Traffic Act 1988 and has a maximum penalty of 26 weeks' custody and/or a fine at level 5 (unlimited) on summary conviction.
Magistrates heard that Burns' vehicle was spotted driving in an unacceptable manner on the afternoon of Tuesday, 14th November 2023.
Police pulled the VW Beetle over when they observed it running over the edge of a traffic island. Both offside wheels ran over the kerb and the officer was of the opinion that any pedestrians taking refuge would have been struck.
The officer required Burns to provide a roadside specimen of breath, which indicated she was over the prescribed limit. She was arrested and taken into custody, later providing an evidential specimen of breath containing 129 microgrammes of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath - almost four times the prescribed limit of 35 microgrammes.
The incident happened on the town's Schneider Road, when the 45-year-old was travelling to the school crossing she worked.
Trystan Roberts, mitigating, told the court that his client had experienced mental health difficulties and "was at a particularly low ebb" on the day in question.
He said that she didn't know why she had chosen to drive, when she could have walked to work instead.
"This is someone who had been in a state of desperation when she got inside that car," Mr Roberts said.
Magistrates were of the view that Burns' offence was serious enough to merit a community order.
Christopher Harris, Presiding Justice, said: "This is an extremely high reading, very high, which is very worrying.
"We've also taken into account a number of other factors in reaching our judgment this morning.
"We can see ourselves that your contrition is genuine, that you have no previous criminal record, that you acted in desperation.
"That desperation led to there being a very real and present threat to yourself and others and the bench is concerned to note your employment as a school crossing patrol and the implication that may have had."
Burns was handed an 18-month community order with the requirement that she completes 200 hours' unpaid work and up to 30 days' rehabilitation activity.
Under normal circumstances, although not reported, she should have also been ordered to pay £114 surcharge and £85 towards prosecution costs.
She was also disqualified from driving for a period of 30 months.
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