Northampton man banned from driving after rear-ending car and refusing to do breath test for police

Kian Ogden, aged 21, was sentenced at Northampton Magistrates’ Court on Monday, April 24.

The defendant had been seen drinking heavily at Daventry Football Club earlier that day, the court heard

A 21-year-old man has been disqualified from driving after being suspected of drink driving following a collision and refusing to do a breath test for police.

Kian Ogden, of Monarch Road in Northampton, appeared at Northampton Magistrates’ Court on Monday, April 24 after pleading guilty to failing to provide a specimen for analysis.

The court heard that Ogden had watched two football matches at Daventry Football Club on April 2 earlier this month and was seen “necking back alcohol” prior to leaving the club at around 4pm.

Police were then called to Browns Road in Daventry, where Ogden had driven into the rear of another vehicle that had stopped at traffic lights, the court heard. It was the driver of the other vehicle who contacted the police, suspecting Ogden to be drunk.

Ogden allegedly told police officers at the scene, “I will refuse my breathalyser until I have a lawyer.”

He was subsequently arrested and taken into custody, where he refused further requests to supply a specimen of breath for analysis, despite police telling him they could not delay.

The court heard that Ogden, who has never been in trouble with police before, was unfamiliar with the legal process of doing a breath test and did not realise that police were not under obligation to wait until he speaks with a barrister.

The defendant claimed he told the police officers who stopped him that he had asthma and wanted to be sure of his rights and options regarding providing a blood or urine sample instead.

Ogden’s defending barrister said he strongly suspects that, had the defendant known all of this, he would have just completed the breathalyser test.

His barrister said: “He thought he was taking the right course of action and that was genuine.”

Ogden was sentenced to a year long community order - during which, he must carry out 100 hours of unpaid work. He was also ordered to pay £85 in court costs, a £114 victim surcharge and he was disqualified from driving for 18 months.