Katie Price today denied drunkenly crashing her £75,000 pink Range Rover into another car after her ex-boyfriend’s birthday bash.
The 40-year-old former glamour model is accused of being almost twice the legal drink drive limit when her car bumped into another vehicle and ended up in a hedge on October 10 last year.
She pleaded not guilty to the allegation this morning, insisting she could not have been driving the vehicle at the time of the early hours incident in Shooters Hill Road, Woolwich.
Mother-of-five Price was breathalysed at the scene of the crash and had 69 microgrammes of alcohol in 100ml of breath - almost twice the legal drink drive limit, it is said.
District Judge Nigel Dean told the court this morning: “The issue in this case is whether Miss Price was legally in charge of the vehicle.
“She relies on the statutory defence - that there was no likelihood of driving while the level of alcohol exceeded the prescribed limit.”
The court heard the owner of the car that was hit found pink paint on the bodywork the following morning.
“He concluded an accident of some sort had occurred and made enquiries,” added the judge. “CCTV appeared to show Ms Price’s Range Rover in the vicinity of his car.”
Price had spent the previous evening at ex-boyfriend Kris Boyson’s 30th birthday party at a Turkish restaurant and bar.
She was arrested more than an hour after police arrived at the scene of the crash, at around 1.40am, and was detained for 13 hours at a police station before being released.
Price was charged last month and stayed tightlipped as she was escorted by security into court this morning for the hearing.
She wore large sunglasses to cover her face and a grey and maroon fluffy jacket.
She asked for permission from the judge to not say her address out loud in court, as her lawyer claimed she has been “trying to become anonymous for some time”.
But Judge Dean refused her request, saying: “All defendants are treated equally.”
Price was previously banned from driving for six months in February last year, after she was caught speeding in West Sussex.
She faces a second court hearing later this week in Crawley over claims she got behind the wheel before that ban had expired.
Price, from Horsham, Surrey, pleaded not guilty to the charge of bring drunk in charge of a motor vehicle.
She was freed on unconditional bail until a trial at Bexley magistrates court on February 25.
