Driving ban for all-star hurler after he was found asleep, drunk in car
ALL-Star hurler and former young hurler of the year Cathal Barrett has been banned from driving for two years after being convicted of being intoxicated while in charge of a car.
Barrett (25), from Beakstown, Holycross, Co Tipperary, was also fined €200 at Thurles District Court after Judge Elizabeth McGrath found the facts proven against him in relation to the incident that happened during the heavy snow of Storm Emma on the morning of March 3 last.
Barrett won an All-Ireland medal with Tipperary in 2016 when the county beat Kilkenny in the senior final. He also picked up an All-Star award that year.
The court heard how a witness made a call to the Garda station in Thurles before 7am on March 3 last saying he saw two men “who looked like they were dead” in a car, which was on the road at O’Donovan Rossa Street.
Garda David Carey was in the patrol car that went to investigate the report. He told the court that, on arrival at the scene, he saw a car “out on the road”, with tyre tracks in the snow leading from a parking space to the rear of the vehicle.
There were two people in the vehicle. When he knocked on the driver’s side window the person looked up and put on his seat belt and rolled down the window. The keys were in the ignition. This person gave his name as Cathal Barrett, from Holycross.
The defendant failed a breath test at the scene and was arrested at 7.10am and brought to Thurles garda station, where he provided a breath specimen which contained 65mcg of alcohol/100ml of breath. He was charged with being intoxicated when in charge of a motor vehicle and made no reply to the charge.
The garda said Barrett had told him he was sleeping in the car. It had snowed heavily the night before.
Under cross-examination from defence solicitor Patrick Kennedy, Gda Carey accepted driving conditions were “very difficult” at the time and that Barrett appeared to be sleeping. He also accepted nobody could say when Barrett intended to drive.
Garda Tom Finn, who was with Gda Carey, said they found the car stopped “in the middle of the road” on a oneway street, parallel to a parked car.
Judge McGrath said a Supreme Court ruling had found it was up to the accused in such circumstances to show that they had no intention of driving, when found intoxicated in charge of a vehicle.
Barrett’s solicitor said they would not be offering any evidence.
The hurler was disqualified from driving for two years.