http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/nation/jail-for-drink-driving-tv-chief/story-e6frg6nf-1111113655553
THE current affairs shows he oversees find it hard to say sorry when they overstep the mark, but the Seven Network’s news chief apologised to everyone yesterday when he was sentenced to 14 months of weekend detention following his third drink-driving offence.
“I apologise to my family for the grief that I have caused them, I apologise to my employer and colleagues. I also apologise to the drivers of NSW and to the police involved,” Peter Meakin said outside Manly Local Court in Sydney.
Asked whether he could do his job in jail, he replied: “I think I can do my job in any number of circumstances. It’s up to my employers to decide what they find acceptable and I would have no wish to stay there against their wishes.”
The 64-year-old director of news and current affairs will appeal against the sentence, to be served at Parramatta Correctional Facility in Sydney’s west. He was also banned from driving for eight years. Not even character references from Seven Network owner Kerry Stokes, former Nine Network chief executive Sam Chisholm and Ten Network executive chairman Nick Falloon could save him from the sentence.
But his bosses were standing by him last night, with David Leckie, chief executive of Seven Media Group, issuing a statement to staff calling on them to “join with me in showing your support for Peter at this difficult time”. “Peter has during his time at the network displayed enormous loyalty to the network and achieved great things which are made clear to all by our leading position in news and public affairs programming. Loyalty is not a one-way street.”
Magistrate Jane Culvert had earlier accepted the evidence of police officers Luke Lieschke and Adam Castleden that they were forced to jump out of the way of Meakin’s BMW when he accelerated as they tried to pull him over for a breath test at Narrabeen on Sydney’s northern beaches on October 4 last year.
She said there was clearly an “element of flight” when he turned off the highway at the nearest opportunity and switched his lights off. He was arrested and returned a blood alcohol reading of twice the legal limit. Meakin acknowledged having two glasses of bourbon after work and having had several drinks over lunch that day.
Ms Culvert barely blinked as she listened to barrister Phillip Boulton SC tell the court his client was truly contrite, had not had a drink since the night of the incident, was undergoing treatment for alcohol dependence and had suffered immense shame and public embarrassment. He said a jail term “would be personally and professionally a complete disaster”.
As well as finding Meakin guilty of drink-driving, to which he had pleaded guilty, Ms Culvert found him guilty of dangerous driving, a charge he had disputed. “The defendant made a deliberate choice to proceed in his vehicle in a manner which he knew forced not one but two police officers off the road in efforts to avoid being pulled over for a random breath test.”