Man Deemed Drunk Sleeps at DUI Hearing
‘A New Zealand judge halted a court hearing when he suspected that a defendant facing charges of drinking and driving was drunk on the dock.
Lyle George Morgan, a builder from the southern city of Invercargill, appeared to fall asleep in the city’s district court on Wednesday while his lawyer was questioning a prosecution witness, The Southland Times newspaper reported. [..]
When Judge Kevin Phillips noticed the defendant dozing he halted proceedings and asked defense counsel David Slater if Morgan was drunk.
“A distinct possibility,” Slater replied.
Judge Phillips said he wouldn’t continue a hearing for a man who was drunk and had slept through most of the evidence.
Morgan, awake again, responded: “I’m not drunk in your court. You want to see me drunk in your court?”‘
