Judge Paul Kelly
A JUDGE has dismissed three alleged speeding offences detected by GoSafe vans, two of them against motorists who said they didn’t get the fixed penalty notices in the post.
Judge Paul Kelly made the rulings at Carndonagh District Court. It’s the latest in a series of cases where judges are refusing to convict drivers who say they didn’t receive the notices.
Fisherman Sean Arrow, with an address at 65 Malin Road, Moville, said he had only learned of the case against the him the day before the court – when he returned from sea.
He had been accused of driving at 91km/h in an 80km/h zone at Cashel, Carndonagh, on March 28 this year.
“I didn’t receive any notice,” Mr Arrow told the judge.
“I’m not saying it didn’t arrive. It’s just I didn’t see it and it may well be my 81-year-old mother has lifted it and put it away but I certainly didn’t see it.”
Judge Kelly dismissed the case.
In another case Dara Furey, of Drumadoey, Burnfoot, had been summonsed for exceeding the 60km/hr limit at Churchland Quarters, Carndonagh in April this year.
He told the judge he had never received the fixed penalty notice.
“If I had received it I would have paid it straight away but I didn’t,” he said.
The defendant in one case was listed as ‘Eddie McDaid Construction Limited’ a company with an address at 14 Maxwell Road, Rathmines.
A vehicle registered to the company had been detected doing 89km/hr in an 80km/h zone at Cashel, Carndonagh on March 28 this year.
A subsequent fixed penalty hadn’t been paid.
Judge Kelly told Inspector David Murphy that he could not convict a limited company on the charge.
Inspector Murphy asked for an adjournment of the case to allow him to make contact with the ticketing office of GoSafe.
Judge Kelly asked if ‘Eddie McDaid’ was in court.
A man answering to the name said he was, with the judge asking him if he had driven the 300kms from Dublin.
“I drove up last night,” he said.
Judge Kelly struck the case out, adding: “In the circumstances I will not allow an adjournment.”
Under current laws companies or their directors are not legally obliged to nominate or name the drivers of vehicles at the time they were detected speeding.