Drink driver hit motorcyclist whilst overtaking on A95 by Grantown
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A motorcyclist was badly injured when a driver who had too much to drink overtook a car on the A95 road and failed to see the biker.
Inverness Sheriff Court heard that the casualty suffered several fractures, underwent surgery and spent four days in hospital after being airlifted from the A95 between Grantown and Aberlour on October 6, last year.
Sheriff Ian Cruickshank was told that Graeme Costine of Craigie Street, Ballingry, near Lochgelly in Fife, ploughed into the off-road machine and the victim, who was wearing no helmet and had on dark clothing, landed 20 metres from the point of the collision.
The 47 year old was later breathalysed and he had a reading of 53 microgrammes of alcohol in his system.
The limit is 22 micrograms of alcohol per 100 millilitres of breath.
Costine admitted driving with excess alcohol and causing serious injury by careless driving.
Fiscal depute Pauline Gair said; "The emergency services were called and the motorcyclist was flown by air ambulance to Aberdeen with serious leg injuries.
"He had two broken femurs and had to have surgery when two pins were inserted. He also had a fractured collar bone."
Sentence was deferred on Costine until January 25 for a background report and defence solicitor Robert Cruickshank reserved his comments in mitigation for that date.
