A MOTORIST with a ‘persistent’ history of drink driving has been put behind bars.

Graham Herschell was caught behind the wheel while disqualified from driving at the time.

When officers conducted a roadside breath test, he was also found to be almost four times the legal drink-drive limit.

It is not his first time in custody, having been jailed for crashing on the motorway after driving while drunk in 2017.

The 39-year-old was charged with drink driving, driving while disqualified and driving without insurance, and he appeared to be sentenced at Chester Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday, January 17.

Alan Currums, prosecuting, explained how the offences were committed on January 15 this year.

Herschell was driving a Volkswagen Polo on Meadow Avenue in Lower Walton when he was stopped by police.

A check revealed that the defendant was disqualified from holding or obtaining a driving licence at the time, and as a result was uninsured to drive the vehicle.

A roadside drink-drive test produced a reading of 132 micrograms of alcohol per 100 millilitres of his breath – almost four times the legal limit of 35 micrograms.

No stranger to being before the courts for driving matters, Herschell was sentenced to 14 months in prison at Chester Crown Court in June 2017.

This came after he decided to get behind the wheel of a car while five times above the legal drink-drive limit.

Herschell was also banned from driving for seven years and nine months and was required to take an extended driving retest before driving again.

The court heard on that occasion how he was speeding on the M56 westbound when he was involved in a crash with another car as he approached junction nine.

While no-one was injured, Herschell failed a road side breath test, blowing more than five times the legal limit.

He also refused to provide a sample to police for further analysis, and he was later convicted of failing to provide a sample and for dangerous driving.

After being sentenced for that offence, police inspector Steve Griffiths said: “Herschell is extremely lucky that neither him nor anyone else involved in the incident was injured as a result of his reckless actions.

“Driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs is extremely dangerous and puts all road users at risk.

“I want to remind all motorists that the behaviour shown by Herschell is totally unacceptable, and he has had to face up to the consequences of his actions.

“Anyone who is caught ignoring the rules of the road will be dealt with.”

For these latest matters, magistrates said that while they would take the defendant’s guilty pleas into account, the offences were ‘so serious’ that only a custodial sentence could be justified.

They remarked that he has a ‘flagrant disregard’ for court orders and a ‘wilful and persistent’ history of drink-driving related offences.

Herschell, of Derwent Road in Lower Walton, was sentenced to four months in prison and disqualified from driving for 62 months.

He was again ordered to pass an extended driving test once this period elapses before getting behind the wheel again.

A request by the Warrington Guardian for Cheshire Police to issue a custody photo of Herschell was refused on the basis that the sentence of imprisonment was shorter than six months.

Want the pick of the Warrington Guardian news delivered to your inbox every morning? Click here to sign up