Hartlepool scooter rider admits 'drugs and driving don't mix' after taking cannabis

The case was dealt with by Teesside Magistrates Court.

A scooter rider admitted drugs and driving don’t mix when he was given a one year ban by the courts.

Matthew Shea, 29, tested positive for a cannabis breakdown product when was pulled over by police while riding his Lexmoto scooter on Macualey Road, in Hartlepool, on January 9.

Teesside Magistrates Court heard that the officer smelled cannabis when they approached Shea.

A roadside drug test was carried out and indicated positive for cannabis.

A further test at the police station found he had almost twice the specified limit of the cannabis breakdown product THC in his blood.

Shea, of Viola Close, Hartlepool, admitted drug driving and was given a mandatory one-year ban.

Representing himself in court, he said he had been self-medicating with cannabis but added: “I can appreciate the fact that drugs and driving don’t mix.”

He was also fined £120 and ordered to pay £85 prosecution costs and a £34 victim surcharge.

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