Deputy head at controversial 'spiritual school' escapes jail after drunken lunchtime crash in BMW

manchestereveningnews.co.uk:

A deputy headmistress who taught at a controversial 'spiritual' school has escaped jail over a lunchtime drink driving smash after revealing she was getting treatment for a severe alcohol problem.

Hayley Copplestone, 40, tested more than four times the alcohol limit after her BMW veered onto the wrong side of the road and crashed into an oncoming Nissan Juke at 1pm.

In the moments after the head-on collision, Copplestone staggered from her black 118 car and told the other driver she was 'sorry' before walking off as police were called to the scene.

She was located at a nearby property shortly afterwards. The mother of one had previously been deputy head teacher at the state-funded Maharishi Free School in Ormskirk, Lancashire, where pupils learn transcendental meditation calming techniques as part of their curriculum.