A COWDENBEATH man was two times over the limit when he drove his wife to work the morning after drinking at a party.

Christopher O’Reilly, 50, of Broad Street, appeared in the dock at Dunfermline Sheriff Court.

He admitted that on May 15, in Halbeath Road, Dunfermline, he drove a car having consumed excess alcohol. His reading was 44 microgrammes of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath.

Depute fiscal Dev Kapadia said police officers had stopped O’Reilly’s vehicle at 8.40am and could smell alcohol from his breath. He then failed a roadside breath test.

Defence solicitor Jonathan Matheson-Dear said his client was a first offender and had been attending a social function the day before the offence.

“He was at the retirement party for a friend which involved drinking all day, from the afternoon into the evening and night,” added the solicitor.

The next morning, O’Reilly was driving his wife to her work in Dunfermline when he was still over the limit.

“It was a serious error of judgement of which he is ashamed,” said Mr Matheson-Dear.

Sheriff Charles MacNair told O’Reilly: “It should have been clear to you that with the amount you had to drink the day before there was no realistic prospect of you being fit to drive at that time in the morning.”

He fined O’Reilly £265 and banned him from driving for a year.