A WOMAN who later admitted to police being "off her face" after she crashed her friend's car into a wall as she tried to move it, a court heard

Homeless Kerry Long, was staying with her friend in Grange Villa, near Stanley, when a neighbour called and asked if the car could be moved as it was blocking their drive.

Unable to wake her friend, Long, who later told officers that she was “off her face” tried to move the car – when it lurched forward and smashed into a wall.

Newton Aycliffe magistrates heard she had taken cocaine the night before the October 14 offence.

Today, Long, 32, admitted driving while unfit through drugs, aggravated vehicle taking and driving without a licence or insurance. She also admitted stealing £34 worth of meat from Langley Park Co-op on September 25 and damaging an entrance door.

Susan Hanson, mitigating, said Long had struggled with drug addiction for years and was homeless.

She described how Long had remained clean for four years but relapsed following the breakdown of her marriage, loss of her home and family difficulties.

Miss Hanson added: “She is deflated and withdrawn.”

After hearing Long was engaging with support agencies, magistrates imposed a 12-month conditional discharge and driving ban. Long must pay £34 to the Co-op.