A North Shore mum found not guilty of drink-driving after blaming her high breath test on a health drink has been charged again after flipping her car.
Natasha Jansen, 49, was acquitted of high-range drink-driving last month after falling asleep in her car outside her children’s private school in Northbridge and returning a reading more than five times the legal limit.
The mother had the charges dismissed on August 11 after arguing in court that her reflux condition, combined with her skincare regime, was to blame.
She said the chlorophyll she drank as part of the regime resulted in alcohol in her mouth and an inaccurately high reading on the police breathalyser.
Weeks after her acquittal, Ms Jansen will face court again next month on a new set of charges.
Police allege the 49-year-old flipped her Toyota HiLux after crashing into a parked car in Northbridge at about 11.30am on August 29.
The North Shore woman once again returned a positive reading for alcohol in her system at the scene of the crash.
She was taken to Chatswood Police Station where she allegedly refused to submit to a breath test.
Natasha Jansen (pictured) allegedly flipped her Toyota HiLux after crashing into a parked car in Northbridge about 11.30am on August 29
Ms Jansen has been charged with negligent driving and failing to submit a breath analysis.
A NSW Police spokesman said emergency services found the overturned Toyota HiLux after being called to Kameruka Rd following reports of a crash.
‘The driver, a 49-year-old woman, was treated at the scene by NSW Ambulance paramedics for minor injuries,’ the spokesperson said.
‘She was subjected to a roadside breath test, which allegedly returned a positive result.’
The new charges come after Ms Jansen’s high-range drink-driving charges were dismissed in Hornsby Local Court by Magistrate Margaret McGlynn.
Ms Jansen fell asleep in her car outside the Northbridge playing fields at Shore School on the afternoon of July 23, 2024, causing a long queue.
Suspecting she may have been drinking, police administered a breath test, which returned a blood-alcohol reading of 0.243 per cent – nearly five times the legal limit of 0.05.
Her lawyer, Michael Bowe, argued Ms Jansen had been drinking liquid chlorophyll as part of her skin regimen, which, combined with her reflux condition, had contributed to an inaccurate reading.
Ms Jansen was acquitted of high-range drink-driving last month after returning a reading more than five times the legal limit and blaming it on a health drink
Ms Jansen had consumed two 500ml bottles of Grants liquid chlorophyll, available at supermarkets, while waiting outside the school, the court was told.
Neuropharmacology expert Professor Macdonald Christie testified the amount Ms Jansen consumed should have left her with a blood alcohol reading of 0.12 or less – below the threshold for a high-range drink-driving charge.
The court was told Ms Jansen suffered from a reflux condition which a police breathalyser expert admitted could have contributed to an inaccurate reading if it caused her to regurgitate the chlorophyll into her mouth.
The breathalyser may have reflected the alcohol content in Ms Jansen’s mouth, rather than in her bloodstream, the court heard.
