Nathan Patrick O’Malley lodged a severity appeal after being jailed for four months with a further three months on parole when sentenced at Corowa Local Court on August 18.

A three-year driving ban was also imposed.

Magistrate Gordon Lerve said when sentencing O’Malley the issue of general deterrence was important with 35 drink-drivers appearing in court in three months.

“He is lucky he is not in the District Court facing a charge of death by dangerous driving,” Mr Lerve said.

O’Malley, 27, of Redlands Road, pleaded guilty to a charge of mid-range drink-driving with a reading of 0.140.

Mr Lerve said it was “the worst category of case” for that type of offence.

But Judge Garry Neilson said NSW Judicial Commission statistics showed 43,745 convictions for mid-range drink-driving with less than 1 per cent jailed for it.

“He took a risk driving a short distance from his mate’s place to home and he came a cropper,” Judge Neilson said.

O’Malley had eight schooners of mixed drinks from about 5.30pm on June 5 without anything to eat and crashed his car about 12.40am the next morning.

His vehicle went through the intersection of Ramsey Street and Redlands Road after failing to slow in dense fog and crashed through two bedrooms.

The occupants were sleeping in the second bedroom and freed themselves from under the car without being hurt.

O’Malley paid a $1250 excess on the insurance policy for damage to the house and personally apologised which was accepted.

Barrister Alan Blackman said the damage was substantial and that was the most disturbing feature of the case.

“In my submission, it is a very severe sentence in the circumstances,” Mr Blackman said.

He said O’Malley had a previous drink-driving offence in Western Australia in 2007.

Judge Neilson varied the penalty to a seven-month suspended sentence with the three-year driving ban remaining.