No leniency shown to drink-drive policeman

11th March 2010

A Whangarei police officer has lost his bid to  avoid a  drink- drive conviction.

Senior Constable Ross Kneebone, 53,  was convicted, fined $600 and  given a six-month driving ban when he appeared for sentencing in the Whangarei District Court yesterday.

His future as a police officer now rests on an internal disciplinary process scheduled to start soon.

Kneebone had pleaded guilty on Monday  to  drink-driving.

Police had withdrawn a charge of failing to remain stopped.

Kneebone told Judge Duncan Harvey through his lawyer Arthur Fairley that he wanted to work as an unsworn police officer if, after the court process, his employer allowed him to do that.

Mr Fairley said a discharge without conviction could help Kneebone secure a job as an unsworn officer with his current employer.

Mr Fairley said his client was not saying he should be treated any different to others but was concerned about his employment.

A front page Advocate story and picture of Kneebone on Tuesday was a very real punitive action for a well-known person in the community, he said.

But Judge Harvey said intense media coverage was the penalty to pay for breaking the law while holding a high-profile job.

Prosecutor Sergeant Paul Watkins  opposed the application, saying any decision the court made would have no bearing on the police internal disciplinary process.

He said drink-driving was a serious charge and  Kneebone should not rely on his position as a police officer as justification for the court to treat him differently.

Mr Watkins submitted that Kneebone should be convicted, fined and  banned from driving.

Judge Harvey said no doubt Kneebone was well-thought of as a member of the community and a hard working police officer.

However, he said he was unable to see why Kneebone should be treated differently.

"It is only by being consistent can the courts be seen to be fair," he said.

Being a long-serving police officer, he said Kneebone should have been only too aware of the consequences of his actions.

Judge Harvey said like Kneebone, even ordinary citizens feared for job security and financial difficulty upon conviction of a criminal offence.

Commenting on the court's decision, Northland police acting district commander Inspector Chris Scahill  said Kneebone's future would now be decided by his employer.

Kneebone had been stopped at a police checkpoint on Pipiwai Rd on September 3, 2009.

His breathtest recorded 733mcg  of alcohol per litre of breath. The limit is 400mcg.