Bakers Swamp's Thomas Riches forced Orange police off road while drunk

Thomas George Riches had been drinking at his wife's birthday party in Orange on December 17 last year when he got behind the wheel after an argument with her.

He decided to return home to the family farm where he lived with his wife and elderly parents in Bakers Swamp located about an hour away.

Just before 12.30am a witness had called police after seeing a white ute driving erratically at speed on Molong Road without headlights on. The car was veering on and off the road, into the opposite lane and frequently coming close to colliding with parked cars, the witness said.

Police had gone looking for the ute and found it as it came around a bend. According to police, as Riches approached he was driving "at speed on the incorrect side of the road".

The police vehicle had been forced to "mount a footpath to get out" of the ute's way.

After being stopped by officers, Riches was breathalysed and gave a high-range blood alcohol reading of 0.159, for which the farmer and contractor was charged with high-range drink driving. His license was also suspended.

Appearing in Orange Local Court on Monday, Riches pled guilty to the charge.

Magistrate David Day said it was "just luck" which had prevented Riches from colliding with anyone on the night of the offence.

Solicitor Tim Cullenward told the court that his client had accepted full responsibility for his actions and added that his behaviour was "out of the ordinary".

Mr Cullenward made the case against a prison sentence for his client because it would ultimately impact his elderly parents who relied on Riches' help with the family farm.

Mr Day said the aggravated nature of Riches' offending made him very concerned for the community's safety, telling Mr Cullenward: "Your client likes to get on the drink and go for a drive so he's dangerous".

Riches was convicted for high-range drink driving and sentenced to an intensive community corrections order for 12 months, requiring supervision: part of which will entail him abstaining from alcohol consumption for six months, as well as enrolling in a rehabilitation program. An intensive correction order is a community-based jail sentence.

Riches was also disqualified from driving for a further six months, with him needing to use a mandatory interlock - an electronic breath-testing device linked to the ignition system of a vehicle - for 24 months.

Mr Day concluded his sentencing by emphasising how close Riches had come to a prison sentence.

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