never trust insurance companies

NEW: Penalty for Hit and Run

NEW: Do most plead guilty or not guilty?

Mistake with court summons

Driving without insurance

What's drink driving limits?

Drink driving 'technicalities'

Drink driving: can you go to prison?

Fixed charge notice

Effect of being arrested

How long is your licence gone?

Can I drive after 1 pint?

What to do if arrested

Does the judge have discretion?

Disqualification, is there a better way?

Advice for arrested person

A typical drink driving case?

Can I go to jail for drink driving?

What happens on the day I go to court?

What happens when you are called as a witness?

How to get off a drink driving charge

What is the punishment for drink driving?

Drink driving law

Why some people drink and drive

What is the relationship between psychology and the law?

Do all trials have a jury?

What is the penalty for Dangerous Driving in Ireland?

Best legal advice for court: Part 2

Best legal advice for court: Part 1

Why is eye-witness testimony so unreliable?

What is the difference between careless and dangerous driving?

What happens if you get caught drink driving twice?

What's the difference between careless driving and dangerous driving?

How many penalty points for speeding?

How long does weed stay in your blood stream?

Can a lawyer defend someone they know is guilty?

The answer to this question is "No". As a lawyer you are an officer of the court. This means that a Judge must have absolute faith that what you are telling them is the truth as you know it. You cannot advance an argument that you know is false, misleading or a plain lie. It is a matter for the court to decide whether what you have been told on behalf of your client (your client's "instructions") is true or not. As a lawyer you may have your own suspicions as to the truth of what your client has instructed you, but if they tell you that they are innocent of the offence then you must represent them as such. But if they have told you that they are guilty you cannot tell a Judge or Jury that your client is innocent, or represent them as such. You cannot do this because you know that what you are saying is not true. Truth, and the search for truth, is at the heart of the criminal justice system. If Judges cannot trust what a lawyer tells them, the system of justice grinds to a halt and collapses.

Do cops have quotas?

What happens if you get caught with no insurance?

Can my wife drive my car without insurance?

What is a section 15A sentence?

Urine drug screening

What is the drink driving limit for urine?

What is the drink driving limit for blood?

What is the drink driving limit for breath?

Why is memory unreliable in eyewitness testimony?

Do you have to say anything in court?

What does it mean to strike out a case?

Are journalists allowed in court?

Drug driving

Court is completely alien

What happens if you refuse to provide a sample?

Can I have one drink and drive?

Is Careless Driving a criminal offence?

Drink driving statistics Ireland

How to get out of a drink driving charge in Ireland.

How long does it take to go to court after you've been arrested for drink driving?

What happens in court for drink driving?

Can I go to jail for drink driving?

How to appeal a drink driving ban in Ireland

Drink driving cases dismissed.

Is drink driving an automatic ban?

How do I get off a drink driving charge?

Do I have to prove my innocence?

How long do drugs stay in your system?

What is the punishment for drink driving?

Drug Driving

Why some people drink and drive

Caught in possession of drugs, what happens next?

Insurance Companies and Drink Driving

Does a Judge have a choice?

Do Police have quotas? Penalty Points and Insurance.

How to get off with Drink Driving charges

Patrick Horan Background, Life as Drink Driving Lawyer

Drink driving law

What is the burden of proof in a criminal case?

What do you mean by self incrimination?

How do I invoke my right to remain silent?

How do Judges make decisions?

Drink driving penalties Ireland 2023

What does a criminal lawyer do?

What is actus reus?

Who has the burden of proof in a criminal case?

One of the biggest causes of drink driving

Should you get a solicitor for drink driving?

Can I go to jail for drink driving?

What should I do if someone makes a complaint against me?

How long does cocaine stay in your blood?

What a Judge might seek in Court

Drink driving limits Ireland 2023

Drink driving limits for Ireland in 2023

What happens when you're arrested for drink driving?

Breath test: What happens in a police station

What happens if you test positive for drugs while driving?

When can I drive after drinking?

What is Mens Rea v Actus Reus?

What is a complaint in criminal law?

What is the burden of proof in a civil case?

How long after drinking can you drive?

What is Self-Incrimination?

What does Causation mean?

What is Mens Rea?

What is a complaint in criminal law?

What is the Standard of Proof in a criminal case?

How long does cocaine stay in urine?

What is a Judiciary?

How many units can you drink and drive?

What is the burden of proof in a criminal case?

Which standard of proof is required in all criminal cases?

What is criminal law?

What is mens rea?

How do Judges think?

Can your silence be used against you?

What is a criminal lawyer?

How much can you drink and drive?

What is intention in criminal law?

How to distinguish between civil and criminal law

What is Causation?

What is the main objective of criminal law?

What happens when a criminal complaint is filed against you?

Why is the standard of proof higher in a criminal case?

What is the difference between Civil and Criminal law?

What is the Right to Silence?

What is the Rule against Self-Incrimination?

What does a criminal lawyer do?

What is the actus reus of Theft?

Who has the burden of proof in a criminal case?

How much can you drink and drive?

How long does cocaine stay in your system?

How to address a Judge in court?

What happens in Police station after drink driving?

Police powers to stop a vehicle.

Can you get put in jail for drink driving?

What happens if you fail a breath test?

What happens at trial?

During a trial the State witnesses will give their evidence first. The State always goes first. This is because the State is bringing the criminal charges against you i.e. they are alleging that you broke the law in some way. It is a rule of the common law that "he who asserts must prove". In a criminal law sphere, the State are asserting that you broke the law, so they must give their evidence to the court first, not you. In other words, they must prove their allegation against you to the court. As each Prosecution witness is led through their evidence by the Prosecutor they are open to cross examination by the Defence. If at the end of the Prosecution case the Defence feel that the State has not brought sufficient evidence to the court so that the court could find the Defendant guilty, the Defence can seek to have the case dismissed at that point. If successful the case finishes here and is dismissed by the trial Judge. If not the Court will reject the Application to Dismiss and invite the Defence -if they wish- to put forward their case. This means that the Defendant can -if they wish- give evidence. As with the Prosecution side, if the Defendant decides to give evidence they can be cross-examined by the State.

How reliable is a person's memory?

Being pulled over by a police officer can be a significant event in a person's day. Being arrested is a monumental occurrence. Sometimes when this happens the fact of being arrested overwhelms people and causes them to either forget or later not remember certain things that were said to them while under arrest. This is a very real phenomena that is not well understood but over the years I have seen very decent and respectable people come into court for routine road traffic matters stating with absolute authority that certain things were or were not said to them at the roadside. These people are not being deceptive or untruthful but have no memory of what was almost certainly said to them because the fact of having being arrested or even stopped was so unique that it "overrode" or "wiped" their memory of what was said to them by the police officer at the time.

What is strict liability in criminal law?

These are usually offences that don't require intention or recklessness to be proven. Examples here are certain road traffic offences like tax or insurance. You must have tax on your car if you drive on a public road. There are no excuses allowed. If you drive with tax or insurance your intention is largely irrelevant. That is what is known as a strict liability offence.

What is a Witness Summons?

A witness summons is often issued by the Prosecution in order to compel someone to appear in court on behalf of the Prosecution to give evidence. The State issues such summonses when they are usure whether the witness will appear voluntarily. In order to ensure that they do, the State issues witness summonses. If a person is validly served and refuses to attend court, a bench warrant for their arrest can issue. On occasion the Defence can issue witness summonses too. Like the Prosecution, the Defence can seek to serve a witness if they feel that that witness may have evidence that is vital to the defence of their client. Just like in the other scenario, if a person has been served with a witness summons by the Defence and doesn't appear in court, a warrant for their arrest can be sought. If this happens the trial can be adjourned in order to get that witness into court.

criminal law, evidence and court procedure

evidence and court procedure

How does Psychology play a role in law?

It may sound obvious but dressing appropriately for court is extremely important. Your clothing is representative of who you are. If you come to court dressed in casual clothing this is the impression that you are leaving with the court. When you dress formally it shows respect to the court and it shows that you're taking this case very seriously. And that's always a big help.

Barristers fees not being paid

While not strictly a criminal law or drink driving issue this is something that has concerned me for a number of years. It is well known throughout the legal industry that a number of solicitors routinely ask Barristers (usually more junior Barristers) to do work for them. The Solicitor in question then later refuses to pay the Barrister for this work. This is commonplace among some solicitors and most Barristers are owed money by many solicitors. Effectively, not being paid for the work that you do seems to be a cost of doing business as a Barrister. It is shameful behaviour. Why do Barristers allow this to happen? Many consider they have little choice. If you complain you risk not getting business. That is the fear. And these particular solicitors know it. It is the cynical manipulation of this fact that is quite disgraceful. The Bar Council represents the interests of Barristers in Ireland. They need to be forceful and vocal on this issue as the reputations of good solicitors (and there are many) are being tarnished daily by the activities of these individuals.

What's the difference between Careless Driving and Dangerous Driving?

a conviction for Dangerous Driving carries an automatic ban from driving. The big difference between Careless Driving and Dangerous Driving is that a conviction for Careless Driving does not lead to an automatic ban from driving. A conviction for Dangerous Driving does and the ban is for 2 years. This is mandatory. What this means is that if you are convicted you will absolutely -regardless of your need to have your car for work or family reasons - be disqualified. So if you receive a summons for Dangerous Driving you should seek legal advice immediately.

What does Careless Driving include?

Here are some examples of Careless Driving. They aren't exhaustive but they give a flavour of what we're talking about. Overtaking on the inside. Driving inappropriately close to another vehicle. Driving through a red light. Emerging from a side road into the path of another vehicle. Short distractions e.g. holding a mobile phone or electronic device. (* If the holding of the mobile phone causes the driver to be unavoidably distracted, that will very likely be regarded as Dangerous Driving rather than Careless Driving).

Difference between Dangerous Driving and Careless Driving.

Dangerous or Careless Driving is "context-specific". What I mean by this is that if you drive at 60kph (over the speed limit) down the main street of a busy town at about 2pm in the day when plenty of other road users are there and kids are emerging from school, your driving might very well be classified as dangerous. However, if you drive down the same street at the same speed of 60kph (again, over the speed limit) at 4a.m., when there is nobody around and the street is empty (becasue everyone is at home asleep) then this driving will very likely not be seen as dangerous. Now in both cases the driving is the same. Its the same speed along the same street. But the context is different. One event is taking place at 2pm during rush hour, when a lot of people will be around or might "reasonably be expected" to be around (this last part is a constituent definition of dangerous driving). So, as with a lot of things with the law, the context is extremely important. It is not just the act that has been committed, but the context in which that act was committed that can make one thing a criminal offence, and something else that is exactly the same, not.

What trials have Juries?

Juries are involved in serious offences. There are 2 main venues for criminal trials in Ireland. One is the District Court, the other is the Circuit Court. In the District Court a Judge sits and hears the evidence. The Judge decides what the law is and whether a person is to be found innocent or guilty. No jury is involved. Juries sit in the Circuit Court. This venue is reserved for serious offences, i.e. cases that are too serious to be tried in the lower court i.e. the District Court. In a Jury trial there are 12 people elected to serve on the jury. Each must take an oath prior to serving that they will listen to the evidence and adjudicate on the issue of guilt or innocence based only on the evidence i.e. not on a hunch or because of the appearance of the accused person.

What's the difference between Civil and Criminal Law?

In essence, two things: 1. The burden of proof 2. The standard of proof. 1. In civil cases the burden of proof rests with the person bringing the action. If you're suing someone else, you're required to prove the case. In criminal law the burden of proving the case rests with the State. The Defendant never has to prove anything. They don't even have to give evidence. 2. The standard of proof in a civil case is "on the balance of probabilities" i.e. that it is more probable than not that some event occurred. Usually this is measured at 51%. As long as the probability of the event occurring is higher than 50% then the threshold to prove the case is met. In criminal law the standard of proof is "beyond a reasonable doubt". Its not possible to quantify what this means in percentage terms but its likely to be in the high 80% to early 90% range. The State have to prove the case against you to this level and if they do not, you must be acquitted. Its important to note that "beyond a reasonable doubt" still allows for an element of doubt to remain in the Judge or Jury's minds. But that doubt must be slight. If the doubt is a reasonable one, then they must acquit the Defendant.

Best legal advice for court in Ireland: PART 2

If you've given a blood or urine specimen, this needs to be tested by the Medical Bureau of Road Safety. This process takes about 3-4 days. After that the MBRS will write to you and tell you what the result of the test was i.e. what the concentration of alcohol was in your blood or urine. The Garda who arrested you has 6 months from the date of the incident to apply for a summons. Often they don't apply for the summons until about 4 or 5 months after the incident. There's no particular reason for this and s they have 6 months to do it, its of no consequence. The summons is applied for with the Court Service and once they have created the summons, it is then assigned a court date. That date could be 2-4 months after this date, or longer. All of this means that you may not be required to appear in court until 10 months (or more) after the event. What this really means is that with the passage of time memories fade. This depletion of memory is understandably worsened through the effects of alcohol. So the sooner you put pen to paper and record what happened the better.

Best legal advice for court in Ireland: PART 1

This really is among the best things that you can do to help yourself. That may seem unlikely when you've been arrested and feel depressed at that prospect, but you were there, not your lawyer and your lawyer needs to know exactly what happened. With time, memories fade. So, making yourself write out the details of what happened on the day you were arrested is vital and is of huge value to your lawyer when it comes to trial.

drink driving

Drink driving cases thrown out of court.

Drink driving cases are not inevitable. What I mean by this is that it is not inevitable that you will be convicted and disqualified just because you were arrested. They are certainly very hard and the State have all the advantages. But your drivers licence was something you worked hard to get all those years ago. It was a big moment in your life when you passed your drivers test. Your licence is worth fighting for.

Write down exactly what happened.

Drink driving cases often take many months before they either come into court, or receive a trial date. Delays of between eighteen months and two years, from the day of the arrest to the ultimate trial date, are not uncommon. Do you remember what you said or did in every instance two years ago? Highly unlikely. Now throw alcohol, as a memory-suppressant, into the mix. And don't forget self-doubt as a factor. We all begin to doubt ourselves the longer time passes. Was this really said to me? Did this really happen? That's why writing things down immediately after you've been arrested, while things are still fresh in your memory is so important.

Is there a typical drink driving case?

Automatic ban for Drink Driving?

Can you have one drink and drive?

Can I go to jail for Drink Driving?

How do I appeal my driving ban in Ireland?

What goes on in the courtroom?

Arrested for Drink Driving Twice

Perjury.

Anyone who has taken the time to read the various Tribunals of Inquiry or Commissions of Inquiry into the activities of some Gardai in parts of the country over the years will be familiar with the issue of perjury. While it is not a pleasant thing to consider (that Gardai can lie under oath) a certain minority (and it is a minority) will do so without concern. The reasons that they do so are varied but studies carried out on police forces in the UK, US and Western Europe (ref. Prof. Richard Ofshe, Prof. Richard Leo, Prof. Saul Kassin, Prof. Gisli Gudjonsson ) show largely similar results. Some rationales for this behaviour are examined here.

Why eyewitness testimony is often wrong.

If two people witness the same incident and remember it differently, is one of them lying? Not necessarily. Identification evidence has long been recognised as posing a serious risk of a miscarriage of justice. This is because, over the centuries, seemingly honest and responsible people have identified the incorrect person at trial, despite being certain that they were correct. Why is this? The apparently simple act of remembering something is actually made up of 3 complex stages in our brains. If there is a mistake at any one of these stages, the retrieved memory will be faulty. That’s what allows some witnesses to be adamant that another witness has “told lies”. While this sometimes does happen, what’s equally probable is that both witnesses saw the same incident but remembered it differently. And both will be certain that they are right.

What's the difference between Dangerous Driving and Careless Driving?

Let's focus on Dangerous Driving here as that charge carries an automatic disqualification from driving if you're convicted, while Careless Driving does not. Also, many Gardai seem to be bringing this charge against motorists when a strict reading of the evidence does not support this charge. This fact -and it is a fact- can be demonstrated by the number of Dangerous Driving charges which are ultimately reduced -with the consent of the DPP- to Careless Driving in court. This happens in well over half of the dangerous driving charges brought before the courts across Ireland, indicating that the State was not fully confident about the charge of Dangerous Driving in the first place. Also, the numbers of people being charged with dangerous driving have risen year-on-year, suggesting that some Gardai are using the very wide parameters of the offence to charge people with this offence, when a lesser charge (e.g. Careless Driving) might be far more appropriate. It is highly unlikely that this country is experiencing a sudden upsurge in very bad driving over the last few years. The only plausible explanation is that the pursuit of dangerous driving prosecutions looks far better on your record than less serious offences like Careless Driving or Driving Without Due Care and Attention. The difference between Dangerous Driving and Careless Driving is basically about what I call "outcomes". What do I mean? Two people can drive down the same road, at the same speed and be involved in an accident. If the outcome of the accident is minor (i.e. limited damage to property and no injuries to other motorists) then the driving might be classified as "Careless Driving". But, if the driving (and the driving is exactly the same remember) results in serious outcomes (i.e. damage to property and injuries to a person, or a serious risk of such injuries occurring) then your driving will likely be seen as "Dangerous". So the outcome is all important. The test is an objective one. In other words, the Court takes a ‘birds’ eye’ view of your driving and tries to imagine what a reasonably prudent person would think of it. If that ‘reasonably prudent person’ looking at your driving in context (i.e. the weather, the lighting, the width of the road, the amount of pedestrians/ traffic on it etc) would conclude that your driving didn’t pose a direct, immediate and serious risk of harm to the public, then it’s not regarded as dangerous driving. If they’d conclude that it would, then it likely will be regarded as Dangerous Driving.

Anytime there's uncertainty there's stress.

This is an iron rule of court proceedings: they are stressful, often, very. From the date of the incident to the moment the case is finished (something which can often take well over a year) the toll on a person's mental health can be severe. Its important to know that while being anxious about a case is understandable, its also a huge waste of your energy. If you have to think about the case then use your energies positively: try to remember as much detail about the case as you can. That's vital. When you do that -wrack your brain about what happened on the day you were stopped- you're helping your legal team put together the future defence in your case.

How many penalty points for speeding?

Speeding offences cause penalty points. Every fine in the post carries a fine and 3 penalty points. You get two of them in a month and you're half way towards being disqualified. While raising defences to a charge of speeding in court are strictly limited, they do exist. Its important that you get proper advice (this means not listening to a friend or work acquaintance who has an opinion on everything) from a legal professional familiar with this area. The consequences are obvious: if you go to court and get convicted its now 5 penalty points. Penalty points remain on your licence record for 3 years. Any period where your licence is out of date, or you are serving a court disqualification, does not count as part of the 3 years. If you accumulate 12 points (or 7 where applicable) and are disqualified from driving for 6 months, the points which led to the disqualification are removed at the end of the 6 months. But if you had more offences that had not been endorsed on your licence record by the time you started your 6 month suspension, these extra points will be added to your licence record and will remain on your licence for 3 years (from the time your licence was reinstated).

Can you represent someone you know is guilty?

No. No you cannot. This is a very popular question as ethical considerations apply. People often ask "What if you know someone is guilty?" What they really mean is "What if you suspect someone is guilty?" Those are 2 different things. Firstly, if a client tells you that they committed the offence that they are charged with, you now are aware that they are guilty (they told you so) and as an 'officer of the court' (technical term for a lawyer) you cannot represent to the court that they are innocent of the crime. You cannot do this as you would now be misrepresenting yourself to the court. This is a grave ethical error. As long as your client informs you that they are not guilty of the crime, then it is irrelevant what you may think. Your duty as a lawyer is to represent them on a plea of 'not guilty'.

How long does weed in your system?

Ironically even though it's health effects are less severe than "hard" drugs like cocaine or heroin, cannabis stays in your system for much longer. What does this mean? Well, if you are a motorist (and most of us are) and a saliva sample is demanded of you at a checkpoint, then it is highly likely cannabis will still be present at levels above the legal limit even three weeks after having consumed it. It is the very longevity of cannabis that has caused people such difficulties in courts right across Ireland over the last few years. It is less dangerous to your health but will stay in your system far longer than most other hard drugs.

What does the Probation Act mean in Ireland?

Essentially, if the Probation Act is applied, it generally means that you will leave the court with your record intact i.e. no conviction. Everybody wants the Probation Act and many can get it, if the circumstances of the case permit it, as well as your own personal circumstances. The Probation Act is "available" for minor offences, i.e. non-serious or indictable offences. These typically are public order offences, theft offences, minor drug possession charges etc. Obviously the Probation Act is not available for serious charges like murder, rape or serious assaults, and it is never available for certain driving offences e.g. drink driving, drug driving, speeding, dangerous driving etc. The word "available" is important here. The Probation Act is 'available' for many offences. What this means is that it is open to the court to apply it if they think they justice of the case make it appropriate to do so. If you are appearing in court for your first ever minor drug possession charge, there's a good chance that you may receive the Probation Act. But if you're coming to court for your second minor drug possession charge, you will not. Incidentally, if you come to court for your third drug possession charge, the court is now required to consider jailing you. The Probation Act is 'available' for some offences. This means that it is a privilege, not a right. You have no right to the Probation Act, and in all cases you need to demonstrate to the court that you are a worthy candidate to receive it. As in other areas of life, actions speak louder than words.

How can I fight a speeding ticket?

Yes. In general, there are defences open to most criminal cases. In the case of speeding there are 2 ways to look at it: 1. either you deny that you were speeding, or 2. you don't deny that you were speeding but you didn't receive a fine in the post to pay it, getting only a summons instead. If you deny speeding then you've been given the opportunity to pay the fine but have refused to pay it and the 3 points on offer. You'll then receive a summons to court, where if you win, the case is struck out, but if you lose you'll get 5 penalty points. The penalties are higher in court. If you only receive a summons (having never received the fine in the post) then you're at a disadvantage. Obviously if you agree that you had been speeding, then you are likely to have paid the fine had you received it in the post. That would have exposed you to 3 penalty points. But if the fine never arrives and you just receive a summons, then if convicted you'll get 5 penalty points. This is obviously unfair: you're being placed at a significant disadvantage through no fault of your own. So the High Court has ruled that if a person claims that they've never received the fine in the post, then if the person gives that evidence under oath, and if the Court accepts it, then it is regarded as a valid defence to speeding. If the court agrees then it will strike out the summons for speeding against you.

Do cops have quotas?

Yes. Issuing tickets is seen as something of a necessity from Garda Management's point of view, and always has been. The official reason that tickets are demanded and achieved is "road safety" concerns. That's the official reason. The real reason is that tickets generate huge revenues. That's the the real reason. Every year more offences are added to the already generous list of penalty points offences, widening the ways the State can extract money from you, and levy disproportionate penalties e.g. disqualification from driving for an accumulation of speeding offences, which is frankly absurd. It's an example of human irrationality. For example, what do you do when you pass an accident or Garda speed-trap on the road? You slow down. We all do. Then what? After we've driven past the accident or speed-trap we speed up again. Now, there's a good reason to slow down when approaching a speed trap, but why do we slow down driving past an accident? Behavioural psychologists speculate that we slow down because of a phenomenon called "mental availability": experiencing something makes it "available" to us and hence alters our behaviour for a limited period of time. This explains why we slow down passing an accident. It also explains the surge in insurance sales following a natural disaster. After the disaster passes, insurance sales dip again, in line with normal seasonal variations. Back to speeding. If the Gardai know that people speed up following a speed-trap, what is the purpose of the speed-trap? To generate money obviously. It can't possibly be to detect offenders or alter driver behaviours (the official reason for speed-traps) since they know that people will speed up again when they pass them. This is manifestly the case because the presence of speed traps does not alter behaviours, since motorists speed up afterwards. Shouldn't a sensible Garda road traffic policy switch from penalising people with penalty points and fines to one where they invest in behavioural psychology as a means of shifting public behaviours voluntarily? And before you laugh at that, consider this: in 2010 Prime Minister David Cameron set up the Behavioural Insights Team to investigate how small changes in human behaviours could have big differences. For example, the smoking ban of 2004. This was such a well-thought through piece of legislation that it didn't require the creation of an expensive government-funded department to police it: the public policed it themselves, for free. Why cant we do something similar for many road traffic offences? For the record, the vast majority of Gardai (I was one of them) hated -there is no other word to describe it- being directed to go out on the roads and issue tickets. So spare a thought for them the next time you're pulled over. They don't much like it either.

What are the steps of a court case?

This is -in brief- how court cases go. First, the prosecution go first. What this means is that as the moving party (i.e. the party that's trying to prove their case) they are required to present their case first. It's a general rule of evidence that if you assert something then you present your case first. Here the State are alleging that you have committed an offence. That being so they must present their evidence first. As each prosecution witness gives evidence the Judge will carefully write down what is being said. They do this in case there is a later dispute between the prosecution and defence about what a witness said or whether an essential piece of prosecution evidence either was or was not said in evidence. The Judge decides what was or was not said. The Defence is entitled to cross-examine every prosecution witness in turn and to challenge them on their evidence. They will put the defendant's point of view to them and test whether or not the answers given are consistent with what they said earlier. At the end of the prosecution case the Defence can decide whether or not they want their client to give evidence. If they do "go into evidence" the defendant will be open to cross-examination by the State.

Drink Driving

Are journalists allowed in court?

Yes. The only exception is cases that involve juveniles or family law cases. But even in these cases journalists will be allowed into court (if the Judge permits it) as long as they don't report something that could lead to the identities of the parties involved becoming known. For all other cases they can be in court and they can report on whatever they see fit. Its important to understand just what the media are interested in. Its almost always cases that are unusual, violent or interesting for a specific reason. These are the types of cases that people want to read about and these are the kinds of cases the media usually report on. In a highly competitive media market place and with the so much online material that can distract us all, the media need to have some means of attracting our attention so that we click on their articles. The usual method involves inserting a sensationalist headline over the body of the article. Drink and drug driving cases are rarely sensationalist They're just not interesting and wont generate "clicks" to justify their inclusion in an online report of court proceedings, at the expense of other cases that could. They're not in this category because they are not especially interesting. As such they are of little use to journalists who have a vast array of newsworthy cases to choose from that day in court. So while the media are allowed report on anything they like they are unlikely to report on your drink or drug driving case, unless its accompanied by some other factor e.g. verbal abuse of the Gardai, very bad driving or an accident or injury to some other person.

What does it mean to strike out a case?

Simply put, if a Judge strikes out a case that is usually the end of the matter. Usually, but not always. Striking out the case means that the case has been removed from the court system. That particular case is now extinguished. But the Gardai can re-charge you with the same exact offence again even if it has been struck out, provided that the Statute of Limitations has not expired. Most lawyers have experienced circumstances where e.g. a robbery charge was struck out by a Judge because the warnings from the Judge to the State about, for example, getting disclosure served on the Defence, have not been heeded. In some cases Judges have issued prior warnings that unless their directions were complied with by the next date in court, they would strike the case out. If the case is struck out the Defendant may rub his hands with glee and walk out of court thinking that that is the end of the matter. But it isn't. Because the offence of robbery is not governed by a 6-month statute of limitations, just because a Judge has struck the case out, does not mean that the State cannot re-arrest the happy Defendant as he skips out of court and re-charge him with the same exact offence of robbery a second time. This has been known to happen, especially for serious cases. For minor matters the Gardai will rarely re-charge someone with the same offence a second time unless there are good reasons to do so. What you always seek as a lawyer is not so much a strike-out, you seek a dismissal of the case. If this is granted, then the State cannot re-charge you a second time if the first case is struck out. An order of dismissal by the Judge effectively prohibits them from doing so. So if the choice is between a "strike-out" or "dismissal", always seek a dismissal.

Do you have to say anything in court?

I get asked this a lot. The short answer is no. In other words, if you come to court represented by a lawyer they do the talking for you and you don't have to speak at all. If you turn up to court without a lawyer then the Judge will speak to you directly and in that case you will have to speak in court. As this prospect -having to speak in such a public place as a courtroom and to a Judge- is one which petrifies most people, then the sensible thing to do is to get legal advice and get a lawyer to represent you in court. This is especially the case where the offence carries a potential jail sanction. As most offences do carry a penalty which potentially carries a jail sentence if you were convicted, it's all the more important to get that advice and have someone familiar with the court speak on your behalf.

What happens if you drive without insurance?

Again a hugely popular question on Google. Technically if you drive without insurance a Judge is supposed to disqualify you unless there is an exceptional reason not to do so. My experience of Judges across the country is that the relentless pressure to punish people who drive without insurance has meant that some Judges are disqualifying people from driving if they have driven without insurance and if they don't have an exceptional reason for doing so. This is the case even for first-time offenders who have never been in trouble before. In truth the circumstances where someone has decided to drive without insurance because an exceptional event has occurred (e.g. a loved one has taken suddenly ill and needs to be brought to the hospital) are almost nil i.e. they almost never happen. People choose to drive without insurance for any number of reasons, but the main one seems to be something quite trivial: they just needed to drive down the road to get something from the shop and nobody else was around to help them. In these cases and in front of some Judges that simply is not accepted as an excuse and they run the high risk of being disqualified, unless they can be persuaded by their solicitor not to do so. As always though, if you are disqualified from driving you can to appeal that disqualification to the Circuit Court.

Max Fine Driving Without Insurance

The maximum penalty is actually €5,000. But nobody gets a fine of that size, or even half that amount. If they did, they'd almost certainly appeal that, where the size of the fine would likely be significantly reduced. In general the fine applied to cases of this sort is between €300-€600 for a first-time offence and much more if this is the second or subsequent offence. These are just the fines. Imprisonment is also a possibility. But imprisonment is really only an option for people who have driven without insurance for a second or subsequent occasion. A conviction for no-insurance carries other additional headaches, the principle one being the massive hike in your insurance premium. As with all cases where the penalties are severe, you should seek legal advice before going to court. If nothing else, having legal advice spares the Judge having to slow down or even halt their list so that they can explain the legal consequences to you. Experience has shown that Judges rarely like having to slow down their lists because in most courts their lists are already quite long as it is. So do yourself a favour and get advice. And "advice" means legal advice, not some friend who heard about a case, from "a guy who knew a guy who had a case just like yours" This sort of "advice" is almost certainly nonsense.

Road traffic

Can my wife drive my car without insurance?

This is one of the most popular and frequently-asked questions on Google. It sounds surprising but people ask this question and others (e.g. can I drive someone else's car without insurance?) repeatedly. Firstly, the law. No. Your wife cannot drive your car without insurance. The corollary to this also holds true: your husband cant drive your car without insurance either. The fact that people ask this question so often is proof of the resilience of urban myths. Another urban myth was the idea -I heard this a lot growing up- that if your insurance lapsed, there was a "grace period" of a few days (it was never precisely defined) where your insurance company would cover you, in the event that you had an accident, until you took out your new policy a few days later. This was also an urban myth. It was never true, as can be evidenced by the fact that not a single person ever successfully claimed under their policy of insurance during the so-called mythical "grace period". The very second your policy of insurance lapses, you're no longer covered.

Road traffic

How reliable is your memory?

If two people witness the same incident and remember it differently, is one of them lying? Not necessarily. Identification evidence has long been recognised as posing a serious risk of a miscarriage of justice. This is because, over the centuries, seemingly honest and responsible people have identified the incorrect person at trial, despite being certain that they were correct. Why is this? The apparently simple act of remembering something is actually made up of 3 complex stages in our brains. If there is a mistake at any one of these stages, the retrieved memory will be faulty. That’s what allows some witnesses to be adamant that another witness has “told lies”. While this sometimes does happen, what’s equally probable is that both witnesses saw the same incident but remembered it differently. And both will be certain that they are right.

Urinalysis: urine test screening

Urinalysis is the only evidence that Judges accept across Ireland if you want them to accept that you have given up drugs. Actions speak louder than words. If you want a Judge to accept what you say, then start urinalysis. And the sooner you start it the better.

Drugs

10 Year Prison Sentence: Section 15 A

When you've been found in possession of drugs worth €13,000 or more, the penalty is a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in prison. Section 15A (as it is known) is a specific offence where the value of the drugs found exceeds €13,000. When a person has been found in possession of drugs valued at this amount or more, they are at grave risk of this penalty. Initially the offence was designed to target the drug lords, those people involved in the sale and supply of drugs and who benefitted from it. In truth the majority of people who come to court charged with these offences are people who are paid a small amount of money to "hold" the drugs in their property for a few days until someone else comes along and takes the drugs to the next person. In many cases these "drug mules" as they are known, are people with no involvement with organised crime or drugs gangs, are often unemployed and would not normally come to the attention of the Gardai. The courts are then faced with a conundrum: yes these people have been found in possession of drugs valued at €13,000 and so do come within the range of a 10-year sentence. But most have no involvement with criminality. Here's how the Judiciary have dealt with this problem.

Drugs

Clever Psychological Trick

This is actually a really cleaver psychological trick that I've often seen deployed in courts across the country. It was used during my time in the job (I used it myself), that's why I still recognise it straightaway when I see it deployed today. For most Gardai the optimum outcome in a court case is a plea of guilty. This is the case for many reasons, some of which include the fact that a trial involves plenty of preparation and the time to complete this isn't always made available to you, especially if you're working shift patterns, which most are. The other major problem with trials as far as Gardai are concerned is that they have no control over when the trial date is fixed. Often trials are fixed months ahead without any concern over whether the arresting Garda is working that day or not. Often, the Garda isn't working on the date of the trial and even if they are, they may not be working until later in the afternoon of the trial date and if they have children, they may have to get child-minders etc. They then receive notification internally directing them to attend court one a day when they are either resting or even have booked off due to annual leave. Additionally if they are required to come to court on a day when they are scheduled for annual leave, management will often refuse to pay them overtime and will instead insist that they take time off in lieu (T.O.I.L.), which is largely worthless and ends up costing them money. Trials involve preparing your statement and asking other members of the Gardai who were present on the day of the arrest to make statements also. Its a time-consuming process. The optimum position is where the person pleads guilty. If a person pleads guilty, statements are not required, neither is a trial date, so there's no risk of interference with your rest days or annual leave. To 'assist' the motorist in deciding to plead guilty its imperative that you "narrow" the range of options open to them. Typically there are two options open: pleading guilty and pleading not guilty. If you want the defendant to plead guilty (and you do as it makes your life easier) then you have to make that decision the only rational one to choose. To achieve this you decide to charge the defendant with additional charges eg dangerous driving, no insurance (if you haven't produced your insurance within 10 days of being stopped you will receive a summons for having no insurance), no drivers licence (same as insurance), failing to produce insurance, failing to produce drivers licence etc. Suddenly what you imagined to be one offence (drink driving) has now mushroomed into 6 or 7 offences. Sufficiently alarmed you're now very open to any approach that helps to reduce or mitigate the numbers of charges you're now facing. Here the Gardai, in a sort of magnanimous gesture, will usually agree to strike out all of the additional summonses (assuming you have insurance and a full licence) on condition that you plead guilty to the sole count of drink driving. This approach is pretty widespread and is very clever. The Gardai here are trying to narrow the range of plausible options open to you. Plead not guilty and face all 6 or 7 summonses at trial, or plead guilty and just face one. The ingenuity of this approach is that the Guards are only interested in one summons anyway: the drink driving one. All the rest are "red herrings", distractions. They're not serious about those, but they throw them at you in order to help channel you down the only road they want you to take.

Write down what happened when you were arrested.

This is the best advice that you can ever receive when it comes to drink driving. If you decide to plead not guilty to the charge then it is very likely that your case may not get a trial date for at least 6 months and maybe much longer. This is because COVID has caused so much disruption to court lists in 2020. To put it in perspective: the vast majority of all cases in 2020 were "warehoused" into 2021. That meant that 96,000 cases were never reached in 2020 and were added to 2021's court lists around the country. The effect on court lists has been enormous. By far the biggest complaint that Judges raise around the country every day of the week is to the length of their lists and the fact that methods have still not been designed to cope with the backlog from 2020. All of this places incredible strain on trial dates and in some places (especially Dublin) you will not get a trial date for at least 8-10 months after you have been first arrested, and maybe even longer. The point of all this is that with the passage of time, memory fades. The things that you remember today with some clarity, may be harder to remember quite so clearly in 10 months time. That's why writing things down now, while they are still fresh in your memory is so valuable and in the long term may have a big impact on how your cases ultimately fares. So start writing today.

First Thing I Ask Clients

When a client rings me about drink driving the first thing I need to know right away is whether that person has been charged for court by the Gardai before being released, or not. Being "charged" essentially means that you receive 2 forms from the Gardai before you are released from custody. One of these forms is the charge sheet i.e. the allegation that they are making. This document will include your name as well as the name of the Garda who arrested you as well as the station that he is attached to. More importantly though the charge sheet contains details of what is being alleged against you i.e. that you drove a car (registration number is included) at a certain place on a certain date and that when you were arrested you were impaired due to alcohol. Again, this charge sheet is an "allegation". What this means is that this is what the Gardai are alleging. The charge sheet is not proof, it is just an allegation. It is not proof that you drank and drove while impaired, just that this is what the Gardai are alleging that you did. Only a court can find you guilty and only a court (not the Gardai) can state definitively whether you were in fact driving while impaired when they arrested you. The second document that you will receive is known as a Recognisance form. Its also known as a bail sheet. Again this form will include your name and the arresting Garda's name but it included other information too, such as your address. It also includes a promise by you: that you will turn turn to court to meet the allegation/charge on a certain date at a certain court. You must sign this document as if you do not, you will not be released from custody. Instead, you will be held overnight and brought to court the following morning. If you still fail to sign the document before the court you will almost certainly be remanded in custody to prison. In truth this almost never happens. The vast majority of people sign the Recognisance form and agree to turn up to court at the appropriate date. Once you have signed the Recognisance form, you will be given a copy of it and the charge sheet and released from custody. But you should carefully retain these two documents as they are important for your solicitor when it comes to representing you in court.

What I do for my Clients.

The interests of my clients are in being acquitted at trial. Those are my interests also. As one of the few solicitors who travels the country to represent his clients at trial, I understand what it means when clients tell me that they need their car for work. I understand this becasue I need my car for work also. I could not travel to courts in Dublin, Cork, Limerick, Galway, Kilkenny etc without my car. Quite a lot of my clients appear in court in rural parts of the country, where public transportation is almost non-existent. So when people tell me that they need to stay on the road I get it. That's why I approach each one of my client's cases as if they were my very own case, as I was the one on trial instead of them.

Cannabis in your system

The most important thing to remember about drugs, generally speaking, is that cannabis can stay in your system for up to 28 days. Judges know this, so do Gardai. So if you've had a joint on a Saturday night it will still be in your saliva and blood for up weeks afterwards. And we're not talking here about the mere presence of cannabis: what we're talking about here is cannabis present in your system at a level that exceeds the legal limit up to 3 or more weeks after you smoked it. This is because the "limits" for cannabis are set at levels so low as to discount the reality that you had it in your system due to passive inhalation. This is completely unfair. If a motorist is detected driving and appears to be intoxicated (as they might from alcohol) they can have no complaints if they are arrested and disqualified from driving for this. But, if a motorist smokes a cannabis joint on 1 January and is stopped on 15 January (displaying zero symptoms of intoxication from the joint 14 days earlier) is it right that if they are arrested and prosecuted that they be possibly disqualified from driving? Most reasonable people regard this set of circumstances to be completely absurd. I certainly do.

What do you wear to Court?

This may sound obvious to you but its worth repeating: always dress as if you're attending a job interview. I'm really serious about that. Judges regard themselves as people who deserve respect. They preside over a very important aspect of the economy. Is your job specifically referred to in the Irish Constitution? No, but the job of a Judge is. Their role is provided for and protected in the Irish Constitution of 1937. That's how important their job is. They naturally expect people to show respect for that. I am constantly amazed at the presentation of some people in court. Often these are people -usually men I'm afraid- who have well-paid jobs but who choose to come to court in casual clothes. When you do this it sends out a signal, an unconscious signal to the Judge. It shows that you're not serious and it shows a lack of respect. Before you have opened your mouth your credibility has already been undermined. You wouldn't attend an important job interview in casual clothes would you? Precisely. Well Judges think that the courtroom is far more important than any job interview. So they don't take kindly to people who treat it with less importance.

About 33% of all drivers are acquitted.

No case is hopeless. According to the second edition of P.M. Callow's "Drink and Drug Driving Offences", in England and Wales "the conviction rate [for drink and drug driving] is extremely high, running at 95 per cent" (p.lii). Read that again. 95% of all people prosecuted for drink and drug driving in England and Wales are convicted. That's a huge number, comparable only to conviction rates in countries like Russia and China. In Ireland latest statistics from the Court Services are that the conviction rate for people prosecuted for drink or drug driving is about 63% approximately. That's a massive difference. About one-third of drivers who were over the limit are acquitted. The lesson is clear: no case is hopeless.

Do I have to speak in Court?

No. If you're represented by a lawyer you are not required to say anything. That's what your lawyer is there for: they speak for you. Unless you turn up in court without a lawyer and in that case you will have to speak. But most people are represented by lawyers and this is sensible. The prospect of going to court is so hugely stressful for many people that the thought of having to speak to a Judge directly is almost too much to bear. If you're represented by a lawyer let them do the talking on your behalf. They know what to say and how to say it. That's one less worry to have to think about.

Mandatory Intoxiliser Checkpoints

Many of you will have seen these checkpoints set up around the country. These are also known as "super checkpoints" as they involve 'corralling' traffic from two lanes into one and have multiple Gardai present. Mandatory Intoxilyser Checkpoints (MIT) carry wide powers for the Gardai. They allow a Guard to demand a sample of your saliva whether they believe you may have consumed illegal substances or not. You do not have to exhibit any signs of intoxication whatever. Because this power (to demand saliva samples) is so sweeping, safeguards have been put in place to protect the public. Firstly the MIT checkpoint must be authorised in writing by a Garda Inspector. This authorisation must state where the checkpoint is to be set up, on what date and at what time. The authorisation must be reasonably specific: it must state where the checkpoint should be set up. It must not be vague. These are some of the requirements generally for an MIT checkpoint. Those requirements are mandated by law. If there is a breach of any of these requirements, there may be grounds to have the case against you struck out.

Drug Driving

A common occurrence on Irish roads is the sight of motorists having their saliva tested at special checkpoints, known as Mandatory Intoxilyser Checkpoints. The device used to test for the presence of drugs (any one of 8 different types) takes about 10 minutes to provide a result. If the test proves positive for any of the 8 banned substances (i.e. if you exceed minimum proscribed levels) you will be arrested on the spot and brought to a Garda station so that a blood specimen can be taken from you. One thing to note though: just because drugs have been found in your system above the legal limit, it does not automatically follow that a disqualification from driving is inevitable. It is not. There are certain legal procedures and requirements that the Gardai are required to carry out. If they do, then their case is reasonably robust (I say 'reasonably' as compliance with these legal requirements must be given in evidence in Court and can be subject to cross-examination by the Defence) If they do not, there may be grounds to have the case dismissed.

Drink Driving Limits: Urine

Urine limits are as follows: A. 68-107mgs is a 6 months disqualification. B. 108-135mgs is one year disqualification. C. 136-200mgs is 2 years. D. 200mgs or above is 3 years And again, same as blood, its set in stone, you can’t change it. You can’t get less Once you fall within the parameters you will be given the disqualification that’s applicable to those parameters. Not more, not less, just whatever that particular reading amounts to, that’s what you get. As with blood and breath limits, the disqualification periods here are for people appearing in court for the first-time for drink driving. If you've previously been convicted of drink driving in the last 10 years the disqualification periods above will be "doubled".

Drink Driving Limits: Breath

Breath limits are: A. 23-35mgs which is a 6 months disqualification. B. 36-44mgs is one year. C. 45-66mgs is 2 years. D. 67mgs or above is 3 years. And again, same as blood and urine your disqualification will be based solely on where you fit into those parameters Not more, not less, strictly where you are. As with blood or urine, if you are convicted of drink driving for the second time within a 10 year period, you will face a "doubling" of the disqualification period.

Drink Driving Limits: Blood

The limits for Blood are as follows: A. 51-80mgs, which is 6 months disqualification. B. 81-100mgs is a one year disqualification. C. 101-150mgs is 2 years, D. 151mgs and above is 3 years. These are set in stone. It can’t be a situation where “will the Judge give me less?” “Will you tell them about my circumstances, they might give me less?” They can’t. They must give you what the law says. It's important to note that while limits don't change for a second or subsequent prosecution for drink driving. But disqualification periods do. So if you've been previously convicted of drink driving in the last 10 years and you are convicted a second time within that period, you will face a "doubling" of the disqualification period. So a 6 month disqualification becomes 1 year, a 1 year disqualification becomes 2 years, 2 years becomes 4 years and 3 years becomes 6 years.

Court is completely alien.

People have often spoken to me after being in court and said that they had "no idea of what happened in there". Initially I thought it had something to do with the acoustics i.e. that the sound quality in the court room (in old buildings this is common) was poor or difficult to understand. But then I began hearing variations of this in brand new courthouses with state-of-the-art audio systems. I realised that he problem wasn't the sound quality, the problem was that appearing in court was such a huge event in their lives that it had overwhelmed them to the point of incomprehension: they were hearing but they couldn't hear. For most people the thought of coming to court is a massive event in their lives. When we humans are presented with something new, we try to make sense of it by comparing it to something we've done before or something similar to it. This is what cognitive scientists refer to as "frames of reference". For instance when we go on holidays to a new destination, the frame of reference we create in our heads is to compare what that experience of a new destination might be like to a previous holiday where we went someplace new. Frames of reference are how we make sense of the world. Because people who have never been to court before have no frame of reference, they have nothing to compare it to. So they rely on the only frame of reference they know: tv legal dramas. Television is obviously not real but decades of watching tv shows has had an unconscious effect on people's expectations of what is ahead of them. Some expect the experience to mirror what they've seen on television: lawyers shouting across one another, witnesses being questioned harshly, Judges angrily hammering gavels and calling for "order". This frame of reference has caused some people to become almost physically sick at the thought of going to court e.g. one client of mine began hyperventilating inside the courthouse and my meetings with him had to be conducted away from the building itself. Inside the courtroom different dynamics occur. There are a range of things that you haven't prepared for and which alter your perceptions of your environment. This affects your ability to understand what's going on, leading to confusion e.g. prison officers walking from custody areas, Gardai filing into the witness box to give evidence in some case or other, solicitors speaking in legalisms. If all of this is new its effect can overload our senses, resulting in confusion and bewildered comments afterwards that they "had no idea what happened in there". By the way, Judges in Ireland and the UK do not use gavels and - in general- if lawyers start shouting in court they'll be told to leave. They'll be told this by the Judge who'll politely tell them that "this isn't television".

What happens if you refuse to provide a sample?

What's the penalty for failing to provide a specimen? This question comes up a lot after people have been arrested for drink driving. Due to anxiety or sheer panic, some people simply cannot or will not provide a specimen of their breath, blood or urine when demanded by them in the Garda station. Some have conceded afterwards that they thought -at the time- that with no specimen to test, there would be "no evidence against them". Only afterwards have they realised why this decision was so disastrous.

Drink Driving

What is a Mandatory Intoxiliser Checkpoint?

These checkpoints have become very popular over the last few years. They differ from regular checkpoints in that permission to set them up must first be given by an Inspector, but once this permission has been granted in writing the powers that they create are sweeping. Unlike regular checkpoints where a sample of your breath or saliva may be required if the Garda has reasonable grounds to believe that you might be under the influence of an intoxicant, this doesn't apply to mandatory checkpoints: anyone can be required to provide a specimen of their saliva to check for the presence of a number of illegal substances (e.g. cannabis, cocaine, benzodiazepines, amphetamines etc). This requirement can be made of someone who looks perfectly sober. One very important point to note: so-called "hard" drugs such as cocaine, heroin and amphetamines pass into and out of the system within 3-4 days, but a far less dangerous substance (cannabis) takes much longer to exit the body. Cannabis will stay in your system for up to 21-28 days. Its extremely long-lasting. What does this mean? It means that if you smoke cannabis on the morning of 1st June, it's effects on your system should have largely dissipated by the evening of 2nd June. It's unlikely to be acting on your central nervous system after 48 hours. But if you find yourself stopped at a Mandatory Checkpoint on 15th June (2 weeks after you smoked the cannabis joint) the presence of that joint will very likely still be in your blood and will show up in your saliva. If that happens you will be arrested. If convicted you will be disqualified from driving for 12 months. So you could be arrested for something today that you did 2 or 3 weeks ago and be later disqualified for. Most people have no idea about this.

How to get off a drink driving charge.

Don't rule out one very important factor: luck. It really often does boil down to something as simple as that. Gardai are taught very well how to prosecute drink driving cases in the Garda College in Templemore. While training, not only is it spelled out to recruits that this area of the law is to be given extra special attention, it's also made clear that this area is one of the most heavily litigated areas of law across any spectrum. This is correct. So the Gardai know what to expect and often recruits are given hands-on training by specialist road traffic Gardai, well used to giving evidence in Courts. As if this wasn't tough enough, the entire drink driving procedure is also taught through the medium of Irish. Learning the entire drink driving procedure through the Irish language takes quite a bit of time but you can see the focus that this area of law generates among Garda Management. But as I said: luck does often play a part. A witness might fail to appear in court on the appointed hearing date, there may be a defect on the summons which makes the prosecution unfair or unsafe or -and this happens too- the prosecution evidence may not be good enough to satisfy a Judge beyond reasonable doubt (and this is the test) that it is safe to convict you for the offence. Sometimes -as in life generally- it may be a combination of all these things.

Can I have one drink and drive?

Extremely popular question, even among lawyers. There’s no easy answer. That isn’t a cop-out, it’s just the reality of being human. We are all unique and all different. A pint of beer may not put you over the limit, but it might your mother or father. That makes sense. They’re older than you and being older, have a slower metabolism than you. Their tolerance levels for alcohol are probably lower too. But there's the hint. Everyone is different. But we're even different every day. There's a whole range of things that can affect how well you can successfully process alcohol. Like what? Like your weight, sex, age, metabolism and how much you have eaten. All these factors contribute to how your body processes alcohol. Your body’s ability to process alcohol can be affected by whether you are a little sick or even tired. You could eat the same amount of food today as yesterday and drink the same amount of alcohol. But if you are more tired today than yesterday, this may very well affect your body’s optimum ability to process alcohol. That could put you over the limit today, even though you drank the same amount as yesterday. Everyone is different, every day.

Why some people drink and drive.

Rationally we all know that we shouldn't drink and drive. All of us know that. Nobody is arguing the contrary position. However what I've come to discover over the years is that sometimes people drink, then have a terrific argument with someone (usually a loved one) and in the heat of the moment get into the car and drive. Most of them have only one wish: to immediately get away from that other person. But they had not intended this course of action when they started drinking or even while they were drinking. An event -a row- happened and they felt they had to be away from that other person. Often in these circumstances people quite easily come to the attention of the Gardai and get arrested. Afterwards many have reported feeling "like criminals" and some cannot even bear to look at themselves in the mirror, such is the shame they feel. They're not looking for sympathy. Far from it. They don't think they deserve any. Other people's criticisms of them usually couldn't hold a candle to their own self-criticism or, in extreme cases, self-loathing.

How long does it take to go to court after you've been arrested for Drink Driving?

How long does it take to go to court after you’ve been arrested for drink driving? There’s no easy answer for that because depending on how complex your case is, if your case is a straightforward drink driving case it could take a number of months, it might be until the next year. That’s because in 2020 when Covid hit, it pushed about 100,000 cases from 2020 into 2021, so 2021’s courts are trying to deal with the backlog from last year. So, it could take some period of months. That’s if its proceeding by way of summons. If you’ve been arrested and charged then the process will come into court very soon, within a couple of weeks. But if you haven’t been charged after you’ve been released from custody, that means it will be a summons and that summons may take 6, 8 or 10 months before it gets to you. So it could be a number of months yet and during that period you’re entitled to drive.

What happens in court for drink driving?

What usually happens is that drink driving or drug driving is a three day process generally speaking. There’s the first day that the case comes into court, and on that day the case is adjourned from between four and six weeks to allow the Guards to send to your solicitor all the statements, all the reports, all the documents connected to your case and the case generally is adjourned on the first day from between 4 to 6 weeks to allow that process to take place. On the second day then the Judge will ask, based on having reviewed the evidence with your solicitor, whether you intend to plead guilty or not guilty. If you intend to plead guilty you can deal with the case right there and then on the second day. But if you intend to enter a plea of not guilty and seek a trial date there will be a further third day assigned for the case so on that third day your trial will take place.

How long do the Guards have to take a sample?

From the momnent that you are arrested the Gardai have 3 hours to obtain the specimen of breath, blood or urine from you. If the specimen is breath this is usually obtained quite quickly at the Garda station. A blood or urine sample will require either a Doctor or Nurse to attend and get the sample. The blood sample is obtained using a needle. Urine is obtained using a jug. You must provide a sample. Some people have felt in the past that if they dont give a sample, there is nothing to test. This is a critical error for 2 reasons: 1. The law mandates that you must provide a specimen. You have no choice here. 2. If you fail or refuse to provide a specimen you will be charged with failing to provide a specimen. In truth this offence (failing to provide a specimen) makes the Guards job in court quite easy as proving this offence is relatively straightforward. And if you're convicted of this you will recive a 4-year ban from driving, a disqualification period that is longer than the maximum (3 years) that you could have received for a first offence. But the specimen must be obtained within that 3-hour period. This is an essential proof in court. If it is obtained outside that period of time, the case against you will likely collapse.

Drink Driving, drink driving procedure

drink driving

Will I lose my job if I'm caught drink driving?

Can you dismissed from your employment if you're arrested for drink driving? The short answer is 'No'. If you're arrested, the arrest is merely an allegation. What I mean by this is that when you are charged or summonsed for drink driving, the case is only an allegation until you have been convicted. Obviously if you've been arrested for drink driving (or any offence actually) the arrest is seen by law as an allegation only at first i.e. the Gardai are alleging that you have drank and drove. The fact that you actually drank and drove is only conclusively proven when you either plead guilty to the offence, or are found guilty of the offence. Only a court can decide this, not the Gardai. Even if you're found guilty of drink driving it is doubtful whether you can be dismissed from your job. For instance, if your job is one predominantly based in an office where access to a car to carry out your work is not required, it might be difficult for an employer to sustain a dismissal in these circumstances. But if your job is one where you need a vehicle to drive, the very fact that you cannot drive any longer may make your employment no longer feesible. Additionally there are some occuptations where a conviction for drink driving would possibly lead to a dismissal. The obviius example might be where the person arrested was a member of the Gardai.

Drink Driving

criminal law solicitors, drink driving

What is the Punishment for Drink Driving?

The punishment for drink driving in Ireland is disqualification If you’re convicted or you plead guilty you will be disqualified That’s irrespective of your circumstances, your family circumstances, your work circumstances While they may be taken into consideration, and they are, its mandatory As soon as you plead guilty or you’re found guilty you will be disqualified Its mandatory The Judge has no discretion They must put you off the road

How to get off a drink driving charge

Theres no scientific method when it comes to defending drink driving. There are many people involved in the process, from Gardai, to Judges, to Solicitors and then you. At any stage in the process, one of these people may say something at trial that causes the Judge to take a certain view of the case. Sometimes it is as simple as that. In some cases success comes down to luck: maybe a vital witness doesn't turn up to court, maybe the Garda's evidence isn't precise or in some way unsatisfactory. But there's no defining rule which leads automatically to success. But then you probably knew that anyway.

Drink Driving Cases Dismissed

One of the main ways that we imagine a case being dismissed is where the evidence is heard from the prosecution, the evidence is heard from the defence and the Judge finds that the evidence of the prosecution wasn’t compelling enough and strikes the case out. That’s the view most people have. But there’s other reasons why a case might be dismissed. Yes the prosecution evidence mightn’t be very strong or the Judge might have a doubt about the prosecution evidence. But there’s other ways where the case might be dismissed. Maybe the case was fixed for hearing and a vital piece of documentary evidence goes missing or is not in court or a witness, a vital witness may not have turned up to court. Any one of those things can trigger an automatic strike-out of the case if one of those things is seen by the court to be a very vital aspect of the prosecution case, so there’s many ways why a case might be dismissed

Can you go to jail for drink driving in Ireland?

If this is your first offence, then it’s extremely unlikely. While a prison sentence is a possibility, this is only really reserved for people who are being prosecuted for drink driving a second, third or fourth time. For those people jail is a real possibility. So, if this is your first time in court for drink driving, you’ll almost certainly not be receiving a jail sentence. I did know a judge once (happily retired many years) who jailed everyone who was convicted of drink driving before him. It didn’t matter if this was your first ever offence, or had never been in trouble with the law before. If you pleaded guilty, or were found guilty by him of drink driving, you were automatically sent to prison. It was sheer lunacy, but thankfully very rare. The unintended consequences of his behaviour was that everyone who appeared before him charged with drink driving pleaded not guilty. Even people who had hopeless cases. They did this because they knew that if they pleaded guilty, they would be sent to prison. Pure and simple. This caused a mammoth growth in needless trials and a backlog of court lists. Even people with no objective hope of winning their cases, were herded down the narrow road of pleading not guilty because of one judge. Because if you pleaded guilty you were going to jail. Under this judge appeals rocketed by 900%. I was told this by the district court clerk assigned to this judge. Scores of people were appealing sentences of imprisonment for first-time offences of drink driving. Thankfully the appeal court Judges in the Circuit Court were more pragmatic and sensible. Almost without exception they quashed every single term of imprisonment imposed by this District Court Judge. So, while jail is a possibility, it almost never happens when a person is prosecuted for drink driving for the first time. If it does you can apply to have appeal terms (bail) fixed that day. You can then take up bail that same day and go home while you wait for your appeal to come up.

The Gardai gave me my keys back. Does that mean something?

"But they gave my car keys back to me so that must mean something right?" Well of course it doesn’t. But then again you already suspected that anyway didn’t you? I’m asked this quite a lot by people who are arrested for drink or drug driving. The view seems to be that if you were as impaired or intoxicated as the Gardai presumably think you were, then the Gardai would not have given you your car keys back after the sample of breath, blood or urine was taken. I can understand the logic behind this thinking, and it does make sense. It runs into trouble with Garda procedure though. When you were arrested, you were brought to the Garda station. When you entered the station, you were introduced to another Garda. He or she was probably seated behind a desk. They are the Member-In-Charge. The Member-in-Charge (MIC) is responsible for your welfare while you are under arrest. Their role is to be independent of the procedure taking place. The MIC tells you why you have been arrested (in case this is still somewhat hazy to you) and your entitlement to contact a solicitor or somebody “reasonably named by you” (i.e. usually a family member). They’ll be filling out a book. This is the custody record. Into the custody record they’ll enter your details: your name, date of birth, address, height etc. They’ll also enter other details provided by you e.g. whether you are taking medication, whether you’re suffering from any illness. The MIC will also record other information e.g. their observations of your physical or mental health condition. If you are visibly drunk, they will note this. They’ll also ask you if you had consumed alcohol or drugs and if so when, as in when did you last consume them? They’ll search you and remove your property i.e. wallet/purse, car keys, loose change, mobile phone, cigarettes etc. Your money is counted. So are details of your property. This is all recorded. Once the specimen of breath or the sample of blood or urine has been taken by a doctor or nurse, you’ll generally be released from Garda custody. This depends on your level of intoxication. If you’re still “drunk and a danger to yourself or others” (this is the legal standard) the MIC should not release you from custody. They should keep you in custody until you have either sobered up or a friend or relative has arrived at the station to pick you up. But in most cases people are released very soon after having provided the breath, blood or urine specimen. At this point the Member-in-Charge will then return all the property that was initially taken from them. All the property means all the property. That includes your car keys. Why are they giving you back your keys? Because keys are also property and the Gardai do not have any statutory power to hold onto your property once you have been released from custody. The important point to remember here is that when the Gardai are returning your property, that is all that they are doing: returning your property. When they return your car keys to you, this is not a tacit acceptance by them that maybe you weren’t as drunk or as impaired as they thought when they arrested you. Neither is it confirmation by them that you are in some way now fit to drive. This is a grave mistake and I have represented clients who have mistakenly believed this to be the case, only to be arrested again. That’s right: they’ve been arrested twice in the same night for drink driving. The return of your car keys to you is merely a return of your property, not an invitation to drive again.

Drink Driving Statistics Ireland

In the UK about 95% of people arrested for drink driving are convicted. It’s a very high conviction rate, almost 100%. That’s in the UK. Here in Ireland, it’s a good deal lower, its about 64-65% of people who are prosecuted for drink driving are convicted. That’s means about 35-36% of people who are prosecuted are not convicted. And these are people who must have been over the limit and in many cases were very much over the limit but they weren’t convicted for a whole bunch of different reasons. Perhaps the evidence wasn’t good enough, perhaps a witness didn’t turn up, or some piece of documentary evidence went missing. But there’s proportionally a better chance of succeeding in Ireland than in the UK.

How to Get Out of a Drink Driving Charge in Ireland

There’s no way of “getting out of it”. If you’ve been arrested for drink driving and you’ve given a breath, blood or urine sample, and they come back over the proscribed limit you will be prosecuted for that in court. There’s no specific defence under law which would allow you to escape a prosecution and there’s no specific defence understood by the court, such as a “special reasons” defence that they can use in limited circumstances in the UK where perhaps you’ve moved the car from Point A to Point B and that distance is very, very short. That’s a special reason perhaps why you shouldn’t be disqualified. There is no “special reason” defence in Ireland, so there’s is no specific defence to that. It requires you going through the evidence in fairly fine detail with your solicitor to see whether or not any procedural error has taken place. But there is no specific defence I’m afraid.

Can I have one drink and drive?

The Medical Bureau of Road Safety have spoken about this in the past. Thier view is that drinking one pint of beer or one glass of wine could put you over the limit for drink driving. Prof Denis Cusack, director of the bureau, has stated publicly that there are “very serious dangers” in drinking and driving. “If you’ve been out drinking until two or three in the morning, there’s a big risk, particularly if you’re a learner driver or a novice driver, not only of being caught but also of being in an accident and causing injury or killing somebody,”. Professor Cusack made his remarks to RTÉ’s Morning Ireland. “One pint of beer or one glass of wine could put you over the limit, especially novice or professional drivers Prof Cusack explained the Medical Bureau of Road Safety is the national laboratory that analyses specimens of blood, urine and breath in alcohol and drugs and provides the equipment people see at roadside stops and in Garda stations. ‘People are afraid to come to the pub because of the drink-driving laws’ “We ensure every single device is checked again and again; we are prepared to stand over them and their results.” He warned it is very difficult for people to estimate the amount of alcohol they have in their body. He explained the Bureau's rationale for this: “The human body is a fantastic machine - it has to work in a certain way, so when we take in a drink, we’ve got to handle it in the body and then get rid of it. “One of the difficulties is you’ve almost got to be an expert in alcohol because beer, wine, spirits, liquors - they all have different alcohol concentrations,” he said. “How much you drink, how quickly you drink it, whether you mix beer and spirits, whether you’ve had a meal, your weight, your obesity, fat cells, also whether you’ve taken food with it, and, indeed, how used you are to taking alcohol - all of these go together. “It’s very, very difficult to estimate how much is in your body.” Prof Cusack said people buying over-the-counter “morning after” remedies think these will help dissipate the effect of alcohol but added this is not the case. “Our bodies can only handle and get rid of alcohol, we get rid of approximately half a pint or a glass of wine every hour. So if you take two pints it’s going to take four hours to get rid of that from your system. “It takes an hour to get most drinks from your system. However, people rarely keep tabs on how much they’ve been drinking, when you keep on adding every 15 minutes, half an hour, it’s impossible to calculate,” Prof Cusack said.

drink driving limits ireland 2021, drink driving technicalities ireland

Patrick Horan: His approach

It is legal advice, but a lot of times its not, its just talking to the person. That’s what they want, they want you to speak to them It doesn’t seem very complicated, it doesn’t seem very high-falluting, but it’s as simple as that. If you give people the time, your time, and make time for them, they’ll appreciate that. And that’s usually what they want. Now they want to know that you know what you’re talking about You have to know what you’re talking about. But if you combine those things, skill level and I suppose empathy and understanding. That goes an awful long way People appreciate that and that’s what I try and do

Why some people drink and drive.

They know they shouldn’t do it, they’ve done it. They can’t explain why they’ve done it and then they start to judge themselves They start to assume that they must be a terrible person because they’ve done this thing which they know they shouldn’t have done But it’s usually not a thought-through process Usually, it’s a reaction to something else that’s happened, like a row, an event at home, some unexplained thing, that they just needed to be away Yes, they had consumed alcohol and they’re in a car and driving, and then they suddenly realise “I’m in trouble here” So yes, I do, I do feel a good deal of sympathy for those people

Psychology of Drink Driving

People arrested for drink driving are often carrying around an awful lot of self-criticism, guilt, in some cases even self-loathing. They’ve seen the ads, they know they shouldn’t do it, they’ve done it. They can’t explain why they’ve done it and then they start to judge themselves. In many cases however, a significant consultation can reveal a valid and stateable defence.

PATRICK

HORAN

SOLICITORS

PATRICK

HORAN

DRINK DRIVING SOLICITOR

REPRESENTING PEOPLE IN DUBLIN & ACROSS IRELAND

Legal

First's

Drink & Drug Driving

never trust insurance companies

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Mistake with court summons

Driving without insurance

What's drink driving limits?

Drink driving 'technicalities'

Drink driving: can you go to prison?

Fixed charge notice

Effect of being arrested

How long is your licence gone?

Can I drive after 1 pint?

What to do if arrested

Does the judge have discretion?

Disqualification, is there a better way?

Advice for arrested person

A typical drink driving case?

Can I go to jail for drink driving?

What happens on the day I go to court?

What happens when you are called as a witness?

How to get off a drink driving charge

What is the punishment for drink driving?

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Why some people drink and drive

What is the relationship between psychology and the law?

Do all trials have a jury?

What is the penalty for Dangerous Driving in Ireland?

Best legal advice for court: Part 2

Best legal advice for court: Part 1

Why is eye-witness testimony so unreliable?

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Can a lawyer defend someone they know is guilty?

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What is the drink driving limit for blood?

What is the drink driving limit for breath?

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Drug driving

Court is completely alien

What happens if you refuse to provide a sample?

Can I have one drink and drive?

Is Careless Driving a criminal offence?

Drink driving statistics Ireland

How to get out of a drink driving charge in Ireland.

How long does it take to go to court after you've been arrested for drink driving?

What happens in court for drink driving?

Can I go to jail for drink driving?

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Drink driving cases dismissed.

Is drink driving an automatic ban?

How do I get off a drink driving charge?

Do I have to prove my innocence?

How long do drugs stay in your system?

What is the punishment for drink driving?

Drug Driving

Why some people drink and drive

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Insurance Companies and Drink Driving

Does a Judge have a choice?

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