Up to 4,000 arrested for drink driving walk free

ALMOST 4,000 motorists arrested for drink driving last year escaped conviction, figures released by the Court Service have revealed.

More than 12,800 drivers were arrested on suspicion of being over the limit in 2005, but three out of ten (30%) were not convicted.

* More than 1,600 cases were dismissed by judges.

* 1,550 drivers had a charge of drink driving struck out.

* 742 motorists escaped a court appearance because no summons was served.

While the figures show an average conviction rate of 75% in the 24 court districts around the country, they also highlight some wide discrepancies which suggest that judges vary in their interpretation of road traffic legislation.

Two-out-of-three drivers charged with drink driving in parts of Kerry avoided conviction. Only 354 out of 944 motorists who faced prosecution before courts in Dingle, Kenmare, Killarney and Tralee last year were convicted. Almost 500 cases were dismissed with a further 100 struck out.

Thirty-three drivers in the area also successfully appealed their convictions. The Kerry area accounts for one-third of all motorists in the Republic who had their disqualification from driving overturned last year.

In Cork, the conviction rate is less than 50%. More than 320 drivers - over one-third of the total number caught drink driving in Cork City last year - did not face prosecution due to the failure to serve them with summonses.

There is only a 50% chance of being convicted for drink driving in other parts of Cork.

Fine Gael’s transport spokeswoman Olivia Mitchell said there is clearly a huge discrepancy between district court areas.

“It seems that the judge in Kerry requires a higher level of proof for conviction than anywhere else with a staggering 488 ‘not guilty’ decisions against a mere 354 guilty ones. Overall, at 944 offences, Kerry has a very high level of drink driving.

“What is crucial is to analyse these statistics to determine the underlying factors causing these variations.”

Earlier this week, the Irish Examiner revealed that there has been a sharp decline in convictions for drink driving since 1999, based on the 2004 annual report from the Medical Bureau of Road Safety - the body which conducts analysis of specimens taken from suspected drunk drivers for the State.

MBRS statistics combined with official garda figures showed that just 2,740 drivers were convicted of drink driving in 2004 even though more than 9,000 tested positive for being over the alcohol limit.

MBRS director Professor Denis Cusack said the low rate raises serious questions about the effectiveness of road safety legislation.