A WOMAN medicating on methadone caught driving a Mini through an Isle of Wight village with a cocktail of drugs in her system, has been banned from the roads.  

Sian Parsons, of High Street, Godshill, admitted driving a vehicle whilst unfit through drugs, on June 23, when she appeared before Island magistrates. 

At 2.35pm that day, police on patrol in Godshill pulled her over.

As they spoke with her, Parsons became very upset and was crying, looking pale, with eyes glazed and with a demeanour described as being "up and down" — officers concluding she had driven whilst under the influence of drugs.

She told the officers she needed to go so she could collect her prescribed methadone, a drug she had used for two years.

Parsons, who tested positive for cannabis after a roadside drugs test, was arrested and taken to Newport Police Station, where she vomited and her highly emotional demeanour continued, said Lauren Stone, prosecuting, at the Isle of Wight Magistrates' Court

Parsons, 37, provided a urine sample, which detected a cocktail of drugs — morphine, codeine, cocaine metabolite BZG, methadone and cannabis derivative THC — but she was not over drug-drive limits apart from the cannabis.

She had a high level of impairment and was deemed unfit to drive, but none of the fitness tests were carried out," Miss Stone confirmed.

For jobless Parsons, Oscar Vincent said his client has borderline personality disorder, which he said explained her emotional response to being stopped by officers.

Mr Vincent said his client has been taking methadone the past two years, but was surprised by the drug results, claiming she had never taken cocaine and did not use cannabis.

"She did, however, say a friend had been to Amsterdam and gave her a vape, which she smoked a day or two before the incident," said Mr Vincent. 

"Unaware of its contents, she just thought it was a normal vape, which may explain what was anomalous in the urine analysis.

"There was no suggestion of an unacceptable standard of driving."

Parsons was disqualified from driving for 12 months, and ordered to pay a £120 fine, with £85 costs and a £40 surcharge.