Loophole halts seatbelt case

A prosecution of a Co Galway motorist for allegedly failing to wear a seatbelt has been struck out after his solicitor identified a problem with the summons.

Judge Geoffrey Brown agreed with the argument put forward by the defence solicitor at Ballyhaunis District Court last week that the summons for the alleged seatbelt offence did not "cite a positive offence".

As a result, Judge Brown said he had no option but to strike out the case.

Speaking after the hearing, the prosecuting garda Insp Michael Murray, said that he now expected the wording of a summons for non-wearing of a seatbelt to be changed.

"I expect that a new batch of summonses will be issued," he told The Irish Times.

Inspt Murray, who is head of the Mayo Traffic Corps, said: "I have a feeling someone has twigged this already. The problem is with the Statutory Instrument referred to by the summons.

"I examined it and I had no choice but to agree with the defence solicitor Evan O'Dwyer, I felt.

"The judge also looked at it and he could not see any section where you committed an offence. So the case was struck out."

When the prosecution of the motorist for allegedly failing to wear a seatbelt on February 8th, 2006 in Ballyhaunis was heard in Ballyhaunis District Court on January 17th, after examining the summons and the legislation, Inspt Murray said he had to "hold his hands up" in relation to Mr O'Dwyer's submission and accept the summons did not cite an offence.

Inspt Murray said he had forwarded details of the case to his Chief Superintendent and to the Chief State's Solicitor's office.

Last night a Department of Transport spokeswoman said the department was satisfied the existing law in relation to seatbelts was robust and denied that there was a loophole in the summons.

A spokesman for the Director of Public Prosecutions was unable to say last night whether summonses for seatbelt offences were going to be changed.

Since the non-wearing of seat-belts became a penalty point offence in 2003 more than 34,000 drivers have received points for this offence.

Very few cases concerning seatbelts reach the courts. The vast majority of drivers have accepted the points on their licence and challenges to the receipt of penalty points in court are rare. If convicted in court, a driver faces a criminal conviction and fine.

The summons for a driver accused of driving without a seatbelt says the motorist is guilty of an offence under Statutory Instrument 359.

However, Mr O'Dwyer successfully argued on behalf of the Galway motorist that the summons makes the allegation of an offence but that no offence was contained within the provision.

Last year the Department of Transport transposed into law the European Communities (Compulsory use of Safety Belts and Child Restraint Systems in Motor Vehicles) Regulations.

These regulations make it explicitly clear that "a person (other than a person under 17 years of age) who fails to comply with this regulation commits an offence."