Former All Ireland winner avoids conviction in road sample case

A former Tyrone footballer has avoided conviction for refusing to give a blood or urine sample because gardaí failed to inform him of his obligations, a court has ruled.

Judge James O'Connor dismissed the charge against three times All-Ireland winner and BBC GAA pundit Owen Mulligan because he said gardaí had failed to warn him of his obligation to provide a blood or urine sample when he could not give a sample of his breath.

Judge O’Connor accepted that Mr Mulligan had suffered broken ribs resulting from a football match in Tyrone five days before his arrest, and this constituted a “special” or “substantial” reason as to why the defendant was not able to give a breath sample.

Supt Dan Keane told Listowel District Court yesterday, the first gardaí had heard about Mr Mulligan’s claim to have suffered the injury was when evidence was heard in the case at a sitting of the court in September.

Judge O’Connor said: “He (Mulligan) was opstrpeuous, awful, aggressive and difficult to handle both inside and outside the garda station towards everybody and there is no doubt about that but the decision is to dismiss.”

Mr Mulligan (34) of 83 Church Street, Crookstown, Co Tyrone was arrested at William Street, Listowel on August 29th, 2014 on suspicion of being drunk in charge of a vehicle.

He had attended the wedding of his former teammate Michael Coleman at a local hotel the previous day.