Judge dismisses drink driving case

A judge has dismissed a charge of drink driving against a driver who crashed his car at 3.40am into a wall near Sligo Garda Station, took off running when Gardaí arrived on the scene and was found later hiding behind a wall.

Judge Kevin Kilrane ruled last week that Joseph Curran (22) of Rusheen Ard, Caltragh, had not been lawfully detained when he was handcuffed by Garda Mark Irwin, and put into a patrol van after he was found near Abbey Street and brought back to the scene of the crash at Old Market Street (where he was subsequently arrested for drunk driving by a different Garda) on 3rd April 2017.

At a hearing last January defence solicitor, Mr Gerard McGovern argued that in effect, the defendant, had been arrested twice, once at Abbey Street and the other at Old Market Street, which was not legal.

Last week Judge Kilrane said Garda Irwin had brought Curran back to the ‘scene of the crime’ at Old Market Street without knowing what for. He said he should have called the investigating Garda, Garda Dermot Fearon, who could have come up to Abbey Street and dealt with him.

He stressed he was not attaching any blame to Garda Irwin. He concluded Garda Irwin’s detention of Curran amounted to “an unlawful arrest”.

“This man was never released from unlawful custody. In the circumstances, I’m going to dismiss,” said Judge Kilrane.