A motorcyclist who failed a roadside breath test after falling off his bike is to appear in court to tell a Judge that he had no intention of getting back on the machine.
Alistair Thompson was found by Gardai at Goldrum, Termon just after 6am on September 8th, 2023.
It followed a report from a concerned member of the public who had spotted Thompson falling off the motorbike.
Businessman Thompson, 52, had his case heard at Letterkenny District Court, after he was charged with being in charge of a mechanically propelled vehicle while exceeding the alcohol limit.
Garda Mark O’Sullivan told the court that he attended the scene after 6am and found a male sitting on a motorcycle.
He was wearing full leathers and was riding a black and orange KTM motorcycle.
His speech was slurred and he told Garda O’Sullivan that he was traveling from Downings to Ballyclare in Co Antrim.
He had come around bend and told Gardai that he had slipped off his motorcycle.
Garda O’Sullivan performed a roadside breath-test which Thompson, of Armoy, Co Antrim, had failed.
Solicitor for the accused, Mr Patsy Gallagher, put it to Garda O’Sullivan that the bike was on a stand and that Thompson was “sitting over it” with the keys in his hand.
Mr Gallagher said his client had been resting at his bike for between ten and fifteen minutes and had no intention of driving his motorbike again.
He claimed “This should be a Section 4 charge and not a Section 5 charge. It is clear there was no intent to drive here.”
Judge Ciaran Liddy said he would like to hear from the accused to allow him to rebut the charge but Mr Gallagher said his client was not in court.
Judge Liddy adjourned the case until March 28th next to hear from the accused man.