Drunk driver repeatedly talked about his neighbours when arrested in Laois

A court heard a Cullohill man repeatedly talked about his neighbours after being arrested on suspicion of drink driving. 

John Burke, 70, of Hillview, Parc na Habhann, Cullohill was stopped by Garda Olimpia Sosinska while driving at Levalley, Rathdowney on August 29 last year. 

Garda Sosinska said she followed the car because she had observed it “nearly colliding with a ditch” on the road. 

“I observed again that car swerving to the wrong side again, nearly colliding with a ditch,” she said. 

When she stopped the car Garda Sosinska got a strong smell of alcohol from the car.  She said the driver kept repeating himself. “He repeated himself constantly, especially talking about his neighbours,” she said. 

He was arrested and taken to Portlaoise Garda Station. Garda Sosinska said the man admitted he had been drinking in Rathdowney. 

“Earlier that day he had three pints of Guinness and bacon and cabbage,” Garda Sosinska said the man had told her.

The man was breathalysed at the garda station and he provided a reading of 49mgs per 100mls of breath, she said. 

As he was leaving the station “he actually approached me and thanked me and gave me a hug,” she recalled. 

Defence Counsel David Staunton BL asked Garda Soskinska about the neighbours as he said it wasn’t in her notes. 

She said the defendant had “repeated himself a lot about the neighbours” and she recalled it because they were her former Chief Superintendent and the now retired Chief Superintendent’s wife, who was also a senior garda. 

Mr Staunton said “none of that was noted down.”  He asked about the timeline of the arrest. He said the defendant was detected at 3.09pm, arrested at 3.17pm and arrived at the garda station at 4pm. He said observation of nil by mouth, where nothing is consumed,  began at 4.10pm and the man was breathalysed at 4.30pm. 

Mr Staunton said this meant his detention had been unnecessarily prolonged without statutory provision. He maintained the man shouldn’t have been held for so long “given the timescale involved and the distance he had travelled to the garda station.”

“There was no justification beyond 16.10 to detain Mr Burke,” he argued. 

Judge Andrew Cody rejected the argument. 

“I am satisfied that there is no obligation on the gardaí to observe him while they are in a patrol car,” he said. 

Mr Staunton said his client was a retired lab technician who had never been in trouble before and had cooperated fully with gardaí. 

He said the man had “made a foolish decision to drive on the day” and was an old age pensioner.    

Mr Staunton said the defendant’s daughter was due to get married and he asked that any driving disqualification be postponed till July 1 so that he can drive on the wedding day. 

Judge Andrew Cody said he was prepared to postpone a disqualification in cases where somebody admits guilt. However, guilt wasn’t admitted in this case.   

He fined the man €2,500 and disqualified him from driving for two years. He gave him six months to pay and fixed recognisance in case of appeal.