Woman (19) put in jail over dog leash fine

DonJose

The Irish courts give out suspended sentences to child molesting priests, killers, drink drivers, drug dealers and every other scumbag yet they sentence a girl to 5 days in prison for not paying a fine for walking a dog without lease. WTF :eek:

"A 19-YEAR-OLD woman spent two nights in jail after failing to pay a fine imposed for walking her dog without a leash.

Gardai told Amy O'Driscoll that she would only spend an hour in Mountjoy Prison when she was brought there last Wednesday, but ended up spending two days in prison.

Ms O'Driscoll was arrested last week on foot of a penal warrant because she had not paid a €500 fine after a dog warden seized her pet near her home in Finglas, north Dublin, in November 2007.

Ms O'Driscoll had missed her court appearance because she was out of the country, and was unable to pay the fine and legal costs.

Last week she got a letter saying she had been sentenced to five days in prison.

"It's outrageous, but it appears to be something that is becoming increasingly common," local Sinn Fein councillor Dessie Ellis said yesterday.

Mr Ellis, who is a family friend, spent two days last week trying to get the "terrified" young woman out of Mountjoy.

She was granted temporary release on Friday, after spending her time in a medical cell, where her fellow inmates included two heroin addicts.

Ms O'Driscoll said the experience was the worst of her life."

http://www.independent.ie/national-news/courts/woman-19-put-in-jail-over-dog-leash-fine-1690822.html

Sam Vimes

Serves her right. Everyone's slipped up and killed someone once or twice but walking her dog without a leash!!!! Scum:mad:

Hail 2 Da Chimp

DonJose wrote: »

Mr Ellis, who is a family friend, spent two days last week trying to get the "terrified" young woman out of Mountjoy.

That's the way it always goes... Once they get there they never want to leave!

seamus

Woman gets fined, doesn't pay it, spends time in jail.

Where's the outrage here? She broke the law, she failed to obey the direction of the court, so she went to jail. Nothing has failed or gone wrong here, in fact everything has gone right.

Ms O'Driscoll said the experience was the worst of her life.

Which means she won't forget to pay the next fine. Rehabilitation complete. A success for the justice system.

Hagar

She didn't go to jail for not having her dog on a leash let's be clear about that, she failed to pay the fine imposed by the courts. People cannot be allowed to ignore court rulings. Hanging's to good for her etc etc.

Mr.Lizard

Didn't pay the fine, missed the court date. Regardless of walking the dog without a leash, I'm guessing she wasn't the most desireable member of society to begin with.

Xavi6

Yeah but was she hot?

artielange

Wasn't it the dublin dog wardens the ones that were making 40k and only ticketed 100 plus people between the 2 of them?

javaboy

Hagar wrote: »

Hanging's to good for her etc etc.

To paraphrase the wicked witch of the West, "And her little dog too!" Castration* in his case though I reckon.




*seriously. It's nicer to neuter.:)

peasant

Surely it would have been easier and cheaper to send round the bailiffs and confiscate some of her stuff (telly and the likes) in lieu of payment?

javaboy

peasant wrote: »

Surely it would have been easier and cheaper to send round the bailiffs and confiscate some of her stuff (telly and the likes) in lieu of payment?

Is it a sign that I spent too much time on my arse watching Paramount comedy that I thought you were going to talk about Lombard direct just there?

Cianos

DonJose wrote: »

Gardai told Amy O'Driscoll that she would only spend an hour in Mountjoy Prison when she was brought there last Wednesday, but ended up spending two days in prison.

Is it possible to be sentenced to just an hour in prison? I'd spend an hour in prison just to see what it's like and to be able to tell people I've been to prison.:pac:

Mr.Lizard

Cianos wrote: »

Is it possible to be sentenced to just an hour in prison? I'd spend an hour in prison just to see what it's like and to be able to tell people I've been to prison.:pac:

Yeah right you would. One hour in prison and they'd already have raped your bottom and stolen your sweeties.

Wagon

seamus wrote: »

Woman gets fined, doesn't pay it, spends time in jail.

Yeah i agree, but i reckon what really pisses people off is the fact that the courts took the time to send someone to Mountjoy for not having their dog on a leash while there's still people getting suspended sentences for far worse crimes. Couldn't be arsed digging for them but there's been plenty. We pay our taxes and this is how it's spent, putting people in jail for not walking their dog correctly. I wouldn't call it a failure either, but it certainly highlights the shortcomings fo the system. Again.

Also, the paper said she was out of the country. Could she not have postponed the court date if she had plans made for a holiday or something? It's not a serious offense to begin with. And 500 euro for not having your dog on a leash is pretty ridiculous.

Sam Vimes

seamus wrote: »

Woman gets fined, doesn't pay it, spends time in jail.

Where's the outrage here? She broke the law, she failed to obey the direction of the court, so she went to jail. Nothing has failed or gone wrong here, in fact everything has gone right.
Which means she won't forget to pay the next fine. Rehabilitation complete. A success for the justice system.

The outrage is in the uneven application of the law. If they're going to send someone to jail for a minor offence then rapists shouldn't really be getting suspended sentences

kmick

Lesson 1 - Turn up in court
Lesson 2 - Pay your fine
Lesson 3 - Tell them your dog would suffer FGM if forced to wear a leash.

mickoneill30

Sam Vimes wrote: »

The outrage is in the uneven application of the law. If they're going to send someone to jail for a minor offence then rapists shouldn't really be getting suspended sentences

Are rapists generally getting suspended sentences? The only case I know about was a couple of years ago by some idiot judge (and then the guy got his suspended sentence revoked for throwing a cigarette at the victim).

Any other cases?

ShooterSF

artielange wrote: »

Wasn't it the dublin dog wardens the ones that were making 40k and only ticketed 100 plus people between the 2 of them?

We need dog wardens to enforce the law but we don't need wardens (any type) who have quotas to fulfill. If someone breaks the law fair enough.

Kipperhell

Sam Vimes wrote: »

The outrage is in the uneven application of the law. If they're going to send someone to jail for a minor offence then rapists shouldn't really be getting suspended sentences

The minor offences of disobeying the court and failing to turn up to your court date? These aren't minor offences, the initial reason may be minor. She sounds like loads of people who get caught for something and then says I'm not going to pay the fine what can they do! She found out.

They should work out a better system such as pay deductions rather than jail but for people who have little money what can you do? I would like to see weighted fines.

Mr.Lizard

Rabble rabble!

seamus

Sam Vimes wrote: »

The outrage is in the uneven application of the law. If they're going to send someone to jail for a minor offence then rapists shouldn't really be getting suspended sentences

Contempt of court is not a minor offence and deserves custodial sentences because if someone refuses to obey the court, how can we expect them to live in a civil society under the rules which that court applies?

redout

Proper order I say. Hope it thought her not to break the law again. ffs who is she to complain ? She deliberately broke the bloody law !

javaboy

kmick wrote: »

Lesson 3 - Tell them your dog would suffer FGM if forced to wear a leash.

As I said earlier, it's nicer to neuter.

Sam Vimes

mickoneill30 wrote: »

Are rapists generally getting suspended sentences? The only case I know about was a couple of years ago by some idiot judge (and then the guy got his suspended sentence revoked for throwing a cigarette at the victim).

Any other cases?

That's the one I was thinking of too. That's the only case of a rapist getting off that I've seen but I see in the news every day serious offenders getting pathetically light sentences

Kipperhell wrote: »

The minor offences of disobeying the court and failing to turn up to your court date? These aren't minor offences, the initial reason may be minor. She sounds like loads of people who get caught for something and then says I'm not going to pay the fine what can they do! She found out.

I agree with you. She should have been sent to jail but if she's getting a sentence then so should so many other people.

truecrippler

Sam Vimes wrote: »

The outrage is in the uneven application of the law. If they're going to send someone to jail for a minor offence then rapists shouldn't really be getting suspended sentences

Indeed, I think everyone misinterpreted the OP thread. Sure she should have paid the fine and well spending time is what she gets then thats tough. But the fact that people who are genuinely scum; rapists, murderers etc can sometimes get off with such easy penalties.

Sam Vimes

seamus wrote: »

Contempt of court is not a minor offence and deserves custodial sentences because if someone refuses to obey the court, how can we expect them to live in a civil society under the rules which that court applies?

I'm not saying she shouldn't have been sent to jail, I'm saying that so many other people who are far more deserving of jail (or very heavy sentences) than her are not getting justice. How can we expect someone to live in a civil society if they have 80 convictions and are still getting slapped on the hand?

CreepingDeath

I noticed they didn't say what type of dog it was.

If it was a rottweiler or pitbull, people wouldn't have as much sympathy for her. Or if is was a public park and the dog was acting aggressively.

If you ever catch that program "The dog whisperer", there's plenty of dysfunctional and aggressive dogs out there.
Someone may have made a genuine compliant against her and her dog.

ShooterSF

CreepingDeath wrote: »

I noticed they didn't say what type of dog it was.

If it was a rottweiler or pitbull, people wouldn't have as much sympathy for her. Or if is was a public park and the dog was acting aggressively.

If you ever catch that program "The dog whisperer", there's plenty of dysfunctional and aggressive dogs out there.
Someone may have made a genuine compliant against her and her dog.

They wouldn't share their Kia-Ora?

Slow Motion

I'm sorry but to those who say she broke the law, proper order, I say that is complete and utter bollox! What about the option to extend the chance to pay the fine? Community service? Prison is way out of order in relation to the offence!

I know of one person who has been in court at least 5 times for various offences including assault on a Garda and a foreign student and has not spent 1 day inside despite breaking the conditions of bail more than once.

What we are talking about here is the unfair application of prison sentences in relation to the crime commited, there were plenty of other things that could have been done without resorting to a custodial sentence!

redout

CreepingDeath wrote: »

I noticed they didn't say what type of dog it was.

If it was a rottweiler or pitbull, people wouldn't have as much sympathy for her. Or if is was a public park and the dog was acting aggressively.

If you ever catch that program "The dog whisperer", there's plenty of dysfunctional and aggressive dogs out there.
Someone may have made a genuine compliant against her and her dog.

It was Lassie.......

[IMG][/img]

mickoneill30

Slow Motion wrote: »

I'm sorry but to those who say she broke the law, proper order, I say that is complete and utter bollox! What about the option to extend the chance to pay the fine? Community service? Prison is way out of order in relation to the offence!

Absolutely. Prison was option 2. Option 1 was pay the fine. She didn't take the first punishment. Should the courts keep on giving punishment until the person chooses which one to do.

1: Pay a fine.
2: If you don't do that then go back to court and extend the timeframe for the fine.
3: If you still don't pay then go back to court and get community service.
4: If you don't do that then go back to court and get Prison.

If it happened to me I'd choose option 2 every time. So would everybody else.

Are courts free now? Should the taxpayer keep on paying whatever it costs because people don't want to take their punishment.

What the courts need to do is cop on to the guys who are getting around the system. Not just make it more lenient for lesser offenders. The fine was the punishment. Nothing major. She didn't pay that and got a couple of days in prison. She had the option of paying the fine. It was her choice not to.

AnonoBoy

Sure who among us hasn't spent some time in The Joy?

No big deal.

claiva

Maybe this case will send a message to all those citizens in this country that think it is acceptable to allow their dog to foul the footpaths and green spaces where children play. I have no problem with people walking their dogs in public areas as long as A) they are kept under control (doesn't have to be on a leash if the dog is not a pitbull) and the owner cleans up the excrement that the dog leaves behind.
She was out of the country so she couldn't be at her hearing - where was she ???? On holiday I assume - her defence was she couldn't afford the fine ????? Give me a break.
One of my children happens to be terrified of dogs and if I had a euro for each time a huge dog jumps up on him in parks and the owner smiles and says " don't mind him, he loves children" while my 4 year old goes into near cardiac arrest I'd be a very rich man.
It doesn't matter if the dog loves children, my child doesn't love dogs, don't leave your dog jump up on him please !!!!

Dog poo is toxic and can cause blindness in children.
Clean it up.

Fighting Irish

DonJose wrote: »

The Irish courts give out suspended sentences to child molesting priests, killers, drink drivers, drug dealers and every other scumbag yet they sentence a girl to 5 days in prison for not paying a fine for walking a dog without lease. WTF :eek:

case by case

should we let her away with everything because its not as bad as what some priest done?

fillmore jive

Wail till the Citizen hears about all this......

Slow Motion

claiva wrote: »

Maybe this case will send a message to all those citizens in this country that think it is acceptable to allow their dog to foul the footpaths and green spaces where children play. I have no problem with people walking their dogs in public areas as long as A) they are kept under control (doesn't have to be on a leash if the dog is not a pitbull) and the owner cleans up the excrement that the dog leaves behind.
She was out of the country so she couldn't be at her hearing - where was she ???? On holiday I assume - her defence was she couldn't afford the fine ????? Give me a break.
One of my children happens to be terrified of dogs and if I had a euro for each time a huge dog jumps up on him in parks and the owner smiles and says " don't mind him, he loves children" while my 4 year old goes into near cardiac arrest I'd be a very rich man.
It doesn't matter if the dog loves children, my child doesn't love dogs, don't leave your dog jump up on him please !!!!

Dog poo is toxic and can cause blindness in children.
Clean it up.

How many of these did you report? I have no problem with making people leash their dogs and having to clean up after them, I have a problem with someone being put in prison for it! I dare say the time she spent in prison cost us a damn sight more than the €500 fine!

walshb

She was put in prison because she didn't pay a fine, not for the offence!

We moan when the law is not enforced and we moan
when it is enforced:rolleyes:

claiva

Slow Motion wrote: »

How many of these did you report? I have no problem with making people leash their dogs and having to clean up after them, I have a problem with someone being put in prison for it! I dare say the time she spent in prison cost us a damn sight more than the €500 fine!

Who could I report it to ? The Gardai ?
Come on, I wouldn't waste their time. They have more important problems to deal with.
I tackled someone recently and he threatened to call the Guards on me because I was being abusive !!!!
I asked him to clean up after his dog that I had just seen fouling the pavement. The owner waved an empty plastic bag at me.....somehow believing that it admonished him from any wrong doing. When I pointed out to him that it was empty, he said I was being abusive and threatened to call the Guards and left.
Some people.

Irlbo

I know of people caught with a dozen kilos of cocaine who are still waiting to be sentenced three years after being caught,walking around,going on holidays,most likely still selling,but if they had a doggie without his leech they'd be locked up within a week,says alot about this stupid states legal system doesnt it

The Mad Hatter

Obviously, the dog was at fault.

Nice to see Sinn Féin jumping on the bandwagon, though.

ShooterSF

Irlbo wrote: »

I know of people caught with a dozen kilos of cocaine who are still waiting to be sentenced three years after being caught,walking around,going on holidays,most likely still selling,but if they had a doggie without his leech they'd be locked up within a week,says alot about this stupid states legal system doesnt it

Then your choices are we bring in a set fine or sentence for dealing drugs or we deal with each dog not on leash issue one by one in the courts. Strange as it is petty crimes tend to come with set punishments so she was already sentenced as such.

Slow Motion

walshb wrote: »

She was put in prison because she didn't pay a fine, not for the offence!

We moan when the law is not enforced and we moan
when it is enforced:rolleyes:

My problem is not that the law was enforced! It was the way it was enforced, it smacks of picking a soft target tbh. I don't see why this woman was jailed for not paying a fine, when there are many more serious crimes being committed that are going unpunished or are being punished leniently. This is overkill pure and simple and shows the legal system in this country up for the ass it is!

Irlbo

The Mad Hatter wrote: »

Obviously, the dog was at fault.

Nice to see Sinn Féin jumping on the bandwagon, though.

Dont see any other political parties getting involved

Mr.Lizard

Nice to see Sinn Féin jumping on the bandwagon, though.

Cllr Dessie Ellis knows more than most about imprisonment. He's former IRA and he spent almost 10 locked up for posession of explosives in the 1980's.

He hadn't paid his fine either.

SEPT 23 1989

why was the dog not given the death penalty for this terrible crime?

Wagon

walshb wrote: »

She was put in prison because she didn't pay a fine, not for the offence!

We moan when the law is not enforced and we moan
when it is enforced:rolleyes:

We moan when it's enforced badly, which is all the time unfortunately. Look at the shower of travellers on Paddy's Day in Tipperary getting handed only public order offences for beating the crap out of people, and this girl is sent to prison for not paying a fine for not having her dog on a leash. Sure she should have paid the fine, but it really highlights the inequality in the law.

skyhighflyer

I'm going to assume for my own amusement that she was a tracksuited knackbag with hoopy earrings walking a pitbull unleashed beside a park where young children were playing. The fact that I saw Dessie Ellis involved makes me think that this is lilkely to be the case.

skyhighflyer

Wagon wrote: »

We moan when it's enforced badly, which is all the time unfortunately. Look at the shower of travellers on Paddy's Day in Tipperary getting handed only public order offences for beating the crap out of people, and this girl is sent to prison for not paying a fine for not having her dog on a leash. Sure she should have paid the fine, but it really highlights the inequality in the law.

Your example highlights the equality of the law - if the lads in Tipperary had been college students and not 'a shower of travellers' do you think they'd have got the death penalty or something?

axer

Wagon wrote: »

We moan when it's enforced badly, which is all the time unfortunately. Look at the shower of travellers on Paddy's Day in Tipperary getting handed only public order offences for beating the crap out of people, and this girl is sent to prison for not paying a fine for not having her dog on a leash. Sure she should have paid the fine, but it really highlights the inequality in the law.

A fine is something easy to prosecute on - you have either paid it or not. Other types of cases are not so clear cut. That is why it was so easy to send this girl to jail for not paying.

I wonder has she paid the fine yet? If not, then it is back to prison again or does she not have to pay it now just because she staying in the Joy Inn for 2 days?

walshb

As many have pointed out already, the girl wasn't sent to prison
for the offence, it was refusing to abide by the rule of the court and
a jail sentence would apply in all cases involving this, form
no payment of parking fines to tv licence, to contempt of court etc.

I have to say, for any Politician to be sticking their nose in, in defence
or in support of the ruling is wrong.

Wagon

skyhighflyer wrote: »

Your example highlights the equality of the law

I was interested to see where you went with this. Seemed like you had an interesting point to make but then i read...

- if the lads in Tipperary had been college students and not 'a shower of travellers' do you think they'd have got the death penalty or something?

What the hell does that mean? That I'm having a go cos they're travellers? If they lived in gaffs and got away with it I'd still feel just as angry about it. If they were students and got away with it I'd still feel the same way. The law should apply equally to everyone, not just a certain person.

axer wrote: »

A fine is something easy to prosecute on - you have either paid it or not. Other types of cases are not so clear cut. That is why it was so easy to send this girl to jail for not paying.

Nah there was plenty of evidance. A lot of eye witnesses. Including the guards themselves.