MAGISTRATES found special reasons for not disqualifying a Camel­ford man who admitted drink/driving.

Mr Darren Mark Cooney, aged 43, of Highfield Road, Camel­ford, changed his plea from not guilty to guilty. He appeared before Bodmin Magistrates on Thursday (May 19).

The offence related to driving a BMW at the King Arthur's Arms Hotel car park, Tintagel, on January 22 this year, having consumed 45 microgrammes of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath.

Mr Cooney was given a 12 month conditional discharge but the magistrates found special reasons — the shortness of the distance involved — for not banning him from the road.

Mr Cooney pleaded guilty to having no insurance on the same occasion and was fined £100, with £85 Crown Prosecution Service costs and £15 victim surcharge. His licence was endorsed with seven penalty points. His pleas were taken into account when imposing sentence.