Man clocked at 160 km/h fined despite holding Australian licence

A Roscommon man living in Australia has been fined after a speeding notice was sent to the wrong address due to a clerical mix-up with his name on an old Irish driving licence at Carrick-on-Shannon District Court on October 28.

Kieran Kelly, of Northyard, Scramogue, Co Roscommon, was stopped for speeding at 160 km/h in a 100 km/h zone when travelling near Carrick-on-Shannon on June 8th, 2024. Carrick-on-Shannon District Court heard Garda Gareth Farrell stopped Kelly, who produced a valid Australian driving licence. However, when Garda Farrell checked the Garda mobility
system, it retrieved an out-of-date Irish licence listed under the spelling “Kieran Kelly.”

As a result, the fixed-charge penalty notice was issued to an incorrect address linked to that expired licence. Defence solicitor Colm Conway told the court his client had been “prejudiced because the wrong licence was used,” and said Kelly would have paid the fine if it had been sent to the correct address. Kelly, who divides his time between Ireland and Australia, gave evidence that he had handed over his Australian licence at the roadside and that the Irish address was automatically drawn from Garda records. However Judge Éiteáin Cunningham said she accepted Garda Farrell had acted properly based on the information available but found the facts proven.

Kelly was convicted and fined €320, the same amount as the original fixed-charge notice, with five months to pay. “You’re lucky I’m only fining you the fixed-charge amount and not more for speeding at 160km/h,” she added.

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