Drink driving conviction and ban for well-known chef

A WELL-KNOWN Wexford chef found himself in hot water before the District Court last week as he was banned from the road for drink driving and driving without insurance.

Phelim Byrne of Ballyroe, Blackwater, pleaded guilty to the charges dating from an incident at Ballycanew on August 18. A charge of dangerous driving was withdrawn by the prosecution.

The court heard that on the night in question, gardaí came across the van driven by Byrne swaying onto the wrong side of the road and into oncoming traffic.

He was subsequently arrested on suspicion of drink driving and conveyed to the garda station where he gave a reading of 87mg of alcohol per 100ml breath. Gardaí also found that the insurance had lapsed on the van.

A solicitor speaking on behalf of the wellknown chef said that, in terms of the no insurance charge, the van had not been used for most of that year.

He described the drink driving as ‘an error of judgement’ on his client’s part, before asking that any driving ban be postponed until November to allow him to get his affairs in order.

Upon hearing all the evidence, Judge Gerard Haughton handed Byrne, who was present in court, a €500 fine and a three-year driving ban on the drink driving charge and a €300 fine and two-year ban on the no insurance charge.

He agreed to postpone the ban until November 1.