Implications of a Conviction

air

Hi,
Can someone please outline the consequences of being convicted with driving with excess alcohol (1st level, barely over the limit) in terms of criminal record, requirements to disclose it to employers etc.
Is it in the same legal category as a conviction for a serious offence (assault / murder etc)?
Thanks.

seamus

It's a criminal offence. You are required to disclose it to employers.

air

Is the citizens information site incorrect then when it says: "If the recruitment process does not involve a request for details of previous convictions, you are under no legal obligation to disclose any such conviction."

Victor

air wrote:

1st level, barely over the limit

Assuming you are under 100mg/ml.

If you are charged under the 2006 act and plead guilty early, you can get a reduced ban.

seamus

Sorry, yes I should clarify - you are only required to disclose it to an employer if requested. As that site also says, the employer should really only be interested in relevant convictions too. If you're getting a position in a Financial department, then they shouldn't really consider a drink-driving conviction when hiring you.

air

Victor wrote:

Assuming you are under 100mg/ml.

If you are charged under the 2006 act and plead guilty early, you can get a reduced ban.

AFAIK, this fixed penalty element of the 2006 Act has not been put in force yet, although I'm open to correction. In any case it's not relevant to the case I'm asking about due to when it happened.
Incidentially the reading was between 80 and 90mg.

Thanks for the help anyway.
Finally would you think that these types of convictions would be likely to be covered by the proposals for "spent" convictions after 7 years, mentioned in today's media?

seamus

Yep, I think they would. The proposal is to allow any conviction which results in a sentence of less than six months, to be technically wiped after 7 years, so provided that the person hasn't gotten more than that, the offence would fall into this proposal.

I didn't get a chance to read any more literature on it, but I'm not sure if that means you must serve six months in prison, or that your sentence must be less than six months - e.g. what about a suspended life sentence, does that get wiped after 7 years if the person hasn't done any jail time?

Victor

Such amnesties are usually directed at offences where the maximum possible sentence is X years, not what sentence was handed out.

Turner

Drink driving is not a criminal offence, its a road traffic offence. A conviction would carry the same weight as receiving a conviction in court and fine for speeding or having fancy numberplates, bald tyres etc.

It is however a conviction so if asked to disclose previous convictions you could say yes you have one for a minor road traffic offence.

Oh and the levels are depending on what sample you give..

Blood-80mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood.
Urine-107mg of alcohol per 100ml of urine.
Breath-35ug of alcohol per 100ml of breath.

seamus

Victor wrote:

Such amnesties are usually directed at offences where the maximum possible sentence is X years, not what sentence was handed out.

Such was my hope. I can think of certain judges who would give rapists six-month sentences on their honour that they'd stay crime-free for seven years...

johnnyskeleton

The Bill is the Rehabilitation of Offenders Bill, 2007. It is a private members bill from a member of FF, so it might, or might not, become law.

seamus wrote:

but I'm not sure if that means you must serve six months in prison, or that your sentence must be less than six months - e.g. what about a suspended life sentence, does that get wiped after 7 years if the person hasn't done any jail time?

Victor wrote:

Such amnesties are usually directed at offences where the maximum possible sentence is X years, not what sentence was handed out.

seamus wrote:

I can think of certain judges who would give rapists six-month sentences on their honour that they'd stay crime-free for seven years...

A sentence is a prison sentence or any other order made by a court including any disqualification,penalty, fine, prohibition or order postponing sentence but not:

(a) a sentence for a term exceeding thirty months,
(b) a sentence in relation to any offence against a minor or child,
(c) a sentence for an offence under the Child Trafficking and
Pornography Act 1998, or
(d) a sentence for a sexual offence.

The six month period from the rte article relates to the rehabilitation period. If the sentence handed down by the court is for 6 months or less then the rehabilitation period is 7 years, if between 6 and 30 months it is 10 years, and if it is a suspended sentence of less than 30 months then it is 5 years.

Rape is not included because it is a sexual offence, and murder is not included because it is mandatory life.

As a bill it is just a rough draft (and is lacking in precision and consistency), but the current trend in this country is to bang out poorly drafted legislation and hope for the best.

Chief wrote:

Drink driving is not a criminal offence, its a road traffic offence.

Road traffic offences are criminal offences.

Chief wrote:

A conviction would carry the same weight as receiving a conviction in court and fine for speeding or having fancy numberplates, bald tyres etc.

Drink driving is much more serious than speeding etc, and the mandatory disqualification provisions apply.

Victor

(b) a sentence in relation to any offence against a minor or child,

How is theft against a 17 year old so much worse than theft agaisnt an 18 year old?

johnnyskeleton

Victor wrote:

How is theft against a 17 year old so much worse than theft agaisnt an 18 year old?

Why is a 17 year old purchasing alcohol so much worse than an 18 year old purchasing alcohol? Why can two 18 year olds consent to sexual intercourse but two 17 year olds can't (or at least a male 17 year old can't).

The line has to be drawn somewhere and I think that a crime committed against a 14 year old can be much worse than the same crime committed against a 24 year old.

Rhonda9000

johnnyskeleton wrote:

The Bill is the Rehabilitation of Offenders Bill, 2007. It is a private members bill from a member of FF, so it might, or might not, become law.

Thanks for this johnny. Just curious and maybe you know the answer: oireachtas.ie lists the status of the Bill as 'lapsed'. What does this mean? There isn't a time limit for a Bill to go through the Oireachtas, right?

Victor

I presume its because of the election.

johnnyskeleton

Rhonda9000 wrote:

Thanks for this johnny. Just curious and maybe you know the answer: oireachtas.ie lists the status of the Bill as 'lapsed'. What does this mean? There isn't a time limit for a Bill to go through the Oireachtas, right?

I think that dail business is divided into sessions and each session has a number of bills that will be discussed. When that session is over if a bill hasn't been passed it will lapse but it can be reentered by a TD promoting it again. Or some similar proceedure - it's a murky world, government.