A TEEN driver from Kendal was praised for her maturity in expressing her apologies and shame to the court after pleading guilty to drink-driving.

The 17-year-old, who cannot be identified because of her age, was arrested by police when officers found her car pointing in the wrong direction on a one-way street on December 22.

Prosecutor Lee Dacre said at South Cumbria Youth Court: “She told police she had been to a party but didn’t think she was over the limit and had gone to pick up a friend’s boyfriend.”

The girl was arrested and taken to the police station where she provided a breath sample which had 69 microgrammes of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath.

The legal limit is 35 microgrammes.

Defence solicitor Mike Graham said the girl had showed considerable remorse for the offence.

She was accompanied in court by her grandparents.

The teenager chose to make a statement to the court in which she spoke of her shame.

“My dad left me and my mum and she’s raised me as a single mum while also working,” she said.

“My mum helped me to save up for my driving lessons and I’m really ashamed and annoyed at myself for doing this because it’s going to cost me a lot of money.

“I’ve not been driving since this happened and now I have to walk to work.”

The court heard the appearance was the girl’s first before the courts.

District Judge Gerald Chalk praised the girl for her mature attitude but said she had made an ‘appalling decision to drive’ on the night of the offence.

He warned her that her insurance premiums were likely to be ‘extremely high’ when she gets her licence back after the mandatory driving ban.

“I’m not sure I accept that you didn’t realise you were over the limit but I don’t expect we will ever see you in here again,” he added.

The teenager was disqualified from driving for 18 months.

She was also referred to the youth offending panel for a period of three months and must pay £85 court costs and a £21 victim surcharge.