A DRUNK driver said he had only consumed two pints of Fosters, despite being FOUR times the legal limit.

Dameon Butcher smashed his Ford Fiesta car into a lamppost just minutes after leaving a private members’ club.

He was seen by another driver waiting at the junction of Grove Road and Church Road, in Tiptree, letting an elderly man in a mobility scooter cross the road safely.

But as he pulled away, the 32-year-old McDonald’s worker lost control of his car. When he tried to correct the steering, he smashed into a lamppost.

Police were called and arrested Butcher on suspicion of drink driving.

When he was taken into custody the lower level reading of a breathalyser test showed 140mcgs of alcohol in 100ml of breath. The legal limit is 35mg.

Butcher, of Holly Way, Tiptree, admitted drink driving at Colchester Magistrates’ Court yesterday.

Magistrates told him the sentencing starting point for his offence was a custodial sentence, but instead ordered him to carry out 220 hours of unpaid work in the next 12 months.

He was also disqualified from driving for three years and ordered to pay court costs.

Lucy Lavender, chairman of the bench, said: “You were four times over the limit and it was one hour before school pick-up time.

“You went through a telegraph pole. It could have been a person. This is very serious.

“However, we have also heard you are of previous good character and are very hard working, hence why we have opted to give you a community order.”

Gareth Hunter, mitigating, said Butcher admitted he is a binge drinker.

He said: “He had been to put in a job application and had stopped in the Sportsmans for two pints.

“He foolishly and very stupidly got behind the wheel to drive a short distance home.”

When asked about Butcher’s claim he had drunk two pints of lager, after Probation Service officers had raised doubts over his story, Mr Hunter said: “He is a very slight man and maybe consumption of alcohol into his system takes effect a lot quicker.

“He tells me this was a one-off.”