In a rare legal case, three staff members of a country pub in South Australia are facing court charged over a fatal car crash involving a driver almost six times over the legal alcohol limit.
Penneshaw hotel manager Trevor Roy Jaggard, duty manager Richard Mark Purvis and employee Dean Ian Carey face multiple counts of selling or supplying liquor to an intoxicated person, Anthony Read, who died on his way home from the pub.
The Penneshaw Hotel in South Australia where Anthony Read was drinking before he died in a car crash. (supplied)
The Christie's Beach Magistrates Court heard that the Kangaroo Island resident had consumed 22 drinks in the bar, before being sold a six pack of alcohol prior to his 30km journey home.
The ute Mr Read was driving when he left the pub on June 23, 2013 was found to have hit a tree after drifting off the road about 6km away. The 55-year old later returned a blood alcohol reading of 0.292.
Penneshaw local Mr Carey, 35, has pleaded guilty to three counts of selling or supplying liquor on a licensed premise to an intoxicated person.
Mr Carey's lawyer, Joanne Liptak, said her client served Mr Read three alcoholic drinks over the course of his nine-hour stay at the pub.
She alleged that the instruction to sell the six-pack to Mr Read before he left came from duty manager Purvis.
"When Mr Carey was told towards the end of the night to go and assist Mr Read buy the six-pack of Bundaberg Rum he did not feel like he was in a position to resist that," Mrs Liptak said.
The court heard investigators had watched CCTV footage of Mr Read buy the drinks at the bar - three of which were served by Carey and the others by Purvis and another duty manager.
Magistrate Koula Kossiavelos fined Mr Carey $700 and decided not to record a conviction against him because she said he was cooperative, lacked prior history and was unlikely to re-offend.
Purvis and hotel manager Jaggard will appear in court in April.
