The fine is one of the highest ever doled out in Norwegian history for such an incident.
In the fall of 2006, Kjetil Uleberg, 55, had enjoyed an evening with his friends drinking red wine until past midnight. The next morning, he got into his car to drive to a business meeting. When he was stopped by the police, he was required to take a breath test, which showed him to have a blood alcohol level of 0.7. The legal limit in Norway is 0.2.
In Norway, fines for drunk driving are based on the driver’s income, which meant Uleberg ended up with a whopper of a bill for his hangover.
In addition, he lost his driver’s license for three years and had to chop firewood for 30 days.
"I’ve learned my lesson, anyway," said Uleberg, with good humour.
