Joe Miller: Former Brighton councillor guilty of drink driving

Joe Miller, 28, was stopped on the A27 and found to be over the limit for alcohol after admitting having a large glass of wine at lunch.

Despite his lawyer arguing he was having a panic attack and could not consent to having a blood test, he was found guilty of drink driving after testing nearly double the legal limit.

Miller, of The Woodside, Slaugham Manor, Slaugham, was stopped on the A27 by an unmarked police car after driving at 80mph and tailgating another car.

After nine attempts to breathalyse him, Miller finally tested over the limit at the roadside.

Miller also tested positive for cocaine but this turned out to be a false positive.

Giving evidence in court, Miller said he had celebrated moving out of his parents' house the evening before with his partner by sharing three bottles of champagne between them.

On the day of the stop, Miller was also found to have drunk a “large glass of wine” with friends at lunch.

At Brighton Magistrates' Court the former Tory councillor said he was worried he had been politically “set up” after testing positive for cocaine at the side of the road.

Miller told the court he feared he had been spiked after being stopped and arrested for the drink driving offence.

Deputy District Judge Nicola Fleck rejected arguments that Miller should have been taken to hospital during his time in custody and that he was not able to consent to a blood sample being taken.

The judge also found that Miller was "highly likely" to have been given a sample of his blood, adding that even if he had not been she "struggled to see the prejudice in any event".

David Dudowski, prosecuting, told Brighton Magistrates that Miller had “actively wanted to avoid prosecution”.

Miller was a serving Conservative Brighton and Hove city councillor at the time of his arrest and resigned shortly after.

Miller was disqualified from driving for 14 months and was ordered to pay £2,167.50 in fines and legal fees.