Irish showjumping star Bertram Allen is seeking to “suppress” any incriminating admissions made to police in Florida after he was arrested for drink-driving.
His lawyer argued in a submission in a Florida state court in Palm Beach that Allen was too “impaired” from alcohol following a car crash in January to properly waive his right to silence.
Allen’s lawyer is seeking a court order to prevent details from his police interrogation from being entered into evidence in a jury trial over a charge of drink-driving causing damage.
He has pleaded not guilty to the charge.
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Allen (30) represented Ireland at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and was on the Irish team that finished second in a five-star Nations League showjumping competition in March in Florida.
He is the son of Bert Allen, the multimillionaire whose family formerly owned Slaney Foods.
Allen was arrested on January 13th last after Palm Beach police responded to a car crash involving two vehicles.
The police’s arrest report said Allen was found in the driver’s seat of one of the cars with “glassy watery eyes” and an odour of alcohol coming from his car.
Allen was alleged to have failed sobriety tests at the scene before being arrested and taken to jail, where he failed two breathalyser tests.
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A hearing on his case later this month will decide on an application from Allen’s attorney, Julian M Kessel, to suppress evidence from the interrogation on the grounds that Allen did not properly waive his Miranda rights – the warnings police must give suspects before interrogation.
US police are required to warn suspects under arrest that they have the right to remain silent and the right to an attorney during questioning.
Kessel argued Allen was too impaired to understand his rights and to waive them properly, as the blood alcohol test results showed.
“It is not reasonable to say that he understood his rights and that he properly waived them after considering his position and making an intelligent waiver,” the lawyer argued.
He said any confession was “not the product of a free intellect” and should be rendered “inadmissible”.
He said Allen was “semi-coherent and mumbled an affirmation” to police, which indicated he did not have “a full understanding of his legal position”.
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He claimed the police video made clear that Allen did not understand what he was being told.
Kessel also claimed the manner of Allen’s interrogation was cavalier, arguing that he was arrested and interrogated to elicit incriminating evidence in a “paper-white room made from cement block with a plastic chair in it”.
In his submission, Kessell said Allen was arrested for an “enhanced DUI [driving under the influence]” due to a crash.
“Evidence of Mr Allen’s guilt was, quite literally, right in front of him after he crashed his car,” he argued. “Likewise, his performance on the field sobriety exercises were fresh in his mind and constitute evidence of his guilt.
“As a result, it is apparent that Mr Allen was confronted by evidence of his guilt by his own actions on the night in question. Additionally, Mr Allen was confronted with the fact that his BAC was .228 and .242 – three times the legal limit. Hence, this factor weighs heavily in the defence’s favour.”
Kessel told The Irish Times he could not speak about the case. “I wish I was able to speak publicly about this as Mr Allen is a good, skilled and fair young man – one whom I am proud to represent,” he said.
He described him as “an accomplished equestrian player”. “I will continue to fight for this young man to ensure he has a bright future,” the lawyer said.
The Irish Times sought comment from Allen via his personal email but received no response.
