A TEENAGER who asked a stranger in Carlisle for directions during a break in her car journey home was over the drink-drive limit.

The offence committed by Mackenzie Ormandy, 18, came to light on April 16 after she approached a person in Central Avenue, Harraby, to ask for directions but the person she spoke to noticed she smelled of alcohol.

At Carlisle’s Rickergate court, Ormandy pleaded guilty to drink driving.

The court heard that the witness was concerned enough to contact the police, who arrived a short time later and administered a roadside breath test. It showed the defendant was just over twice the drink drive limit.

She had 71mcg of alcohol in 100mls of breath. The limit for driving is 35mcg. When interviewed, she told police she had got lost and parked up in Central Avenue to ask for directions.

She had parked up to sleep and was going to continue driving home after the alcohol had worn off. She drank vodka and lemonade the previous night, having had her last drink at 2.30am.

Duncan Campbell, defending, said the teenager lived out of the area and came to north Cumbria to work with a promotional programme, serving drinks. She had not had a huge amount to drink, he said.

She had simply not thought about the need for her to drive home and when that point came she had driven only a short distance in her Ford Fiesta towards where she was due to stay, said the lawyer. She thought better of driving and parked up.

Noting that the teenager was previously of good character, magistrates imposed a £120 fine, with £85 costs and a £34 victim surcharge. They banned Ormandy, of Leyland Lane, Leyland, Lancashire, for 20 months.

But they offered her the drink driver rehabilitation course. If completed by a deadline, it will cut 20 weeks from her ban.