Man dozed off at wheel and mounted kerb after drinking to celebrate last day of reservist training, gets jail

SINGAPORE: After celebrating his last day of reservist training at a karaoke lounge, a man fell asleep at the wheel of his vehicle and mounted a kerb.
He was found by the police sleeping with his seatbelt on, with both hands on his steering wheel and the engine running.
Emilio Alphonso Gonzales, a 27-year-old Singaporean, was sentenced to 12 days’ jail, a fine of S$5,000 (US$3,800) and a three-year driving ban.
He had pleaded guilty to a charge each of drink driving and driving without due care and attention.
According to a judgment made available on Wednesday (Aug 14), Gonzales was at a karaoke lounge along South Bridge Road in the wee hours of Dec 1, 2023.
He drank about five to eight small glasses of Carlsberg beer while celebrating the last day of reservist training with two friends, consuming his last drink at about 2.30am.
After this, the three friends took a private-hire ride to Club Aura, where Gonzales drank another five to six glasses of Martell mixed with green tea.
At his last drink at about 4am, he took a taxi to his uncle’s house, where he took a shower.
At about 6am, Gonzales drove his uncle’s car towards Nee Soon Camp for his last day of reservist training. However, he dozed off at about 6.20am and the car mounted the kerb near a bus stop outside Sixth Avenue MRT Station.
An eyewitness who saw the Mercedes-Benz mounting the kerb called for help. When a police officer reached the scene, he noticed that the two left tyres of the car had mounted the kerb.
The rest of the vehicle was on the fourth lane of the road.
The police officer woke Gonzales up and performed a breathalyser test on him, which he failed.
Gonzales was arrested for drink driving and escorted to hospital for a check due to high blood pressure. A blood test found 136 milligrammes of alcohol per 100ml of his blood, exceeding the limit of 80 milligrammes.
Gonzales admitted to falling asleep, attributing his sleepiness to the previous day’s activities. The car sustained scratches at the front and sides.
The prosecution sought jail, a fine and a driving ban for Gonzales, while defence lawyer Mr Ashvin Hariharan from IRB Law asked for a fine instead of jail.
If a fine was not given, he sought a short jail term instead.
The judge noted that Gonzales’ driving record “was not unblemished” – he had a previous speeding violation.
Gonzales is appealing against the jail term and is out on bail pending appeal.