Bilingual breathalysers - Drink driving ruling overturned

TWO peculiarities that may be uniquely Irish came to the fore last year when an appeal in a drink driving case succeeded because a breathalyser machine was not bilingual.

A district court ruling found a statement showing breath-alcohol levels must be presented in Irish and English or it could not be entered as evidence. The fact that the person trying to avoid a conviction was a non-national and, presumably, did not have even the cúpla focal, adds spice to an already over-egged pudding.

The first thing a man fresh from Mars might struggle to grasp is our enthusiasm for finding loopholes in drink-driving legislation. Guilt or innocence are not the issues but rather a high-stakes game with the draughtsmen and women who prepared the legislation, the gardaí who hope to secure a conviction and the defence team. There is hardly an argument that some po-faced beak would not advance to spare a client’s blushes. It is appropriate to test legislation but most of these “challenges” demean our courts and police.

The pretence that Irish is essential in our day-to-day lives brings another layer of ballyhoo to the farce. By all means promote and cherish the language but to suggest that dual documentation is needed to secure a drink driving conviction is farcical. Thankfully, the court of appeal overturned that ruling yesterday and removed one more chance-your-arm barrier to an efficient justice system and safer roads.