Pehi Turoa James Hira Collins sentenced after drunken crash on Kojonup-Katanning Road

A Great Southern man will be required to stay off the road for another three years after crashing his car into a paddock while drink-driving without a licence. Pehi Turoa James Hira Collins was sentenced at Katanning Magistrates Court on April 5 after pleading guilty to four driving offences. Police prosecutor David Loverock told the court Collins was driving a Holden ute west along Kojonup-Katanning Road in Kojonup about 7pm on December 11 last year when he hit the gravel shoulder, overcorrected and crashed his vehicle into a paddock. He was taken to Kojonup Hospital, where a blood sample obtained by police showed he had a blood alcohol reading of 0.139. Collins was not authorised to drive the vehicle due to his licence previously being cancelled. It was also found the Holden ute had not been registered since June 2017 and did not have number plates matching its original registration. Magistrate Dianne Scaddan told Collins a previous drink-driving offence meant his financial penalties would be harsher. “Not only is it going to cost you dearly, you are not going to be able to drive on the road for three years,” she said. Collins was fined a total of $1042 and suspended from driving for three years.