Hollywood actor Chris Pine has been disqualified from holding a licence after he pleaded guilty today to drink-driving.
In the Ashburton District Court Judge Joanna Maze refused an application to discharge Pine without conviction saying she was “obliged to treat offenders alike”.
Judge Maze disqualified Pine from holding a licence for six months and ordered him to pay $93 in reparation. she noted the actor had already made a substantial donation to charity.
Pine’s guilty plea was entered through his lawyer, Marilyn Gilchrist.
The actor stood silent in the dock during proceedings with his hands behind his back.
The police prosecutor said Pine was the driver of a Toyota vehicle which was was stopped in Methven, in Canterbury, at 3.27am on March 1.
A roadside breath test was positive and Pine elected an evidential blood test, which returned a result of 113 milligrams of alcohol per 100 millilitres of blood. The legal limit is 80.
Pine said he had drunk four vodkas, the police prosecutor said. Pine had not previously appeared before the court.
Gilchrist applied for a discharge without conviction, saying the punishment would be out of proportion to the offence.
“He accepts he made the wrong decision to drive that night,” Gilchrist said.
“He was not stopped because of any error in his driving. He had a short 2-kilometre journey though the village of Methven … after a long week of filming.”
Gilchrist said Pine was low on food and in need of sleep that night. A conviction could be “devastating”.
Pine had suffered emotionally and professionally because of “worldwide” coverage of his charge, he had placed his acting contracts in jeopardy, and conviction could potentially affect his ability to travel to Canada, Gilchrist said.
Judge Maze said she accepted Pine was “entirely remorseful” and the incident was out of character.
The judge also noted Pine had paid a “considerable” donation to a charity, which was about four times the normal fine handed down for a drink driving conviction.
“I’m obliged to treat offenders alike,” she said.
There were no aggravating factors and he had a previous good record, and Judge Maze said she took into account the “excessive” media coverage.
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