A Marabella man who said he drank alcohol as a way of coping with the two-year-anniversary of his son’s death was fined $15,000 and had his driver’s permit taken away yesterday, after he was convicted for a third consecutive time for drinking and driving.
Wazir Ramjohn, 52, pleaded guilty to the charge of driving under the influence of alcohol and his attorney, Sharmilla Rampaul, told Magistrate Natalie Diop he needed help instead of a custodial sentence.
Ramjohn has two previous convictions for driving under the influence, one in 2010 and one in 2014.
He was arrested when police responded to a road traffic accident along Union Road Marabella around 6 pm on Sunday. When he was interviewed by officers on the scene, Ramjohn admitted he was drinking alcohol. When a breathalyser test was done on him, it showed he had exceeded the 35 microgramme legal limit by 42 microgrammes. He was arrested and charged by WPC Sylvester.
In her mitigation to the court yesterday, Rampaul said her client’s son died on April 13, 2015 and the date he was arrested was close to the two-year anniversary of the death. She said he had been drinking again because of the anniversary.
Asking for a non-custodial sentence, Rampaul said Ramjohn needs rehabilitation and not jail time. She said he needed counselling as his drinking and depression were inter-related. At the age of 52, she said Rampaul had still not been able to deal with his son’s death and would drink alcohol to block off the pain he was feeling.
Rampaul said her client was willing to participate in any programmes, such as Arrive Alive, as he had not done so in the past because his family did not know about such programmes.
Diop said Ramjohn’s court record showed he had two pending matters from 2010 and 2014 and the police had a duty to update their records. After she stood down the matter for prosecutor Sgt Kassiram Lutchman to check the records, she said in the past Ramjohn’s driver’s permit had been taken away by the court and then reinstated sometime later. She told him that no matter how he felt about his personal circumstances, if drinking brings him relief and he opts to drink he must not be on the road.
She said there was minor damage reported from the accident and Ramjohn should know the law as he has been through the system time and time again. She said with his two past convictions, the court needs to send a clear message that his conduct would not be tolerated. She then fined him $15,000 and ordered him to pay $3,000 forthwith, with two months to pay the balance. In default, he will serve two years hard labour.
Diop also ordered that his driver’s permit be taken away permanently and that he be disqualified from holding a permit for life.