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Garda Caution - motoring related

  • 12-01-2012 12:09pm
    #1
    makeorbrake
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 4,674 ✭✭✭


    If given a 'caution' for what a Garda felt was excessive speed even though he had no speed gun (which the driver disputes), can that 'caution' ever be used against that person to discredit them? I'm thinking here in terms of a party to a serious accident (which happened many months ago) - who will now appear as a witness for the state in their prosecution of another. No wrongdoing was pointed in the direction of the witness at the time of the accident. However, he was 'cautioned' for excessive speed (on a totally seperate occassion - more recently) at more or less the exact location where the accident occurred previously.


    Can this 'caution' be used against the witness in court? i.e. can the defense solicitor (for the other party) try to use this to discredit the witness - or does it have no legal bearing? Would such a caution be recorded on the pulse system?


Comments

  • #2
    source
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 5,322 ✭✭✭source


    makeorbrake wrote: »
    If given a 'caution' for what a Garda felt was excessive speed even though he had no speed gun (which the driver disputes), can that 'caution' ever be used against that person to discredit them? I'm thinking here in terms of a party to a serious accident (which happened many months ago) - who will now appear as a witness for the state in their prosecution of another. No wrongdoing was pointed in the direction of the witness at the time of the accident. However, he was 'cautioned' for excessive speed (on a totally seperate occassion - more recently) at more or less the exact location where the accident occurred previously.


    Can this 'caution' be used against the witness in court? i.e. can the defense solicitor (for the other party) try to use this to discredit the witness - or does it have no legal bearing? Would such a caution be recorded on the pulse system?

    When cautioned at the side of the road, which I presume is what you mean by caution, the Garda will often not even take details, so no there's no way it can come back.

    On another point, when it comes to speeding, there are 2 offences, 1 driving at speed and 2 exceeding the speed limit. For driving at speed the member only has to believe that you were traveling too quickly for the road conditions. In order to prove exceeding the limit a member must be able to state the speed at which you were travelling.

    Usually it is very hard to get a conviction for driving at speed, so a verbal caution about the manner of driving is usually as far as it goes.


  • #3
    makeorbrake
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 4,674 ✭✭✭makeorbrake


    source wrote: »
    When cautioned at the side of the road, which I presume is what you mean by caution
    yes, that's what I mean't albeit that he went out of his way to state that he was 'cautioning me'.
    source wrote: »
    ...the Garda will often not even take details, so no there's no way it can come back.
    Ok, great - glad to hear that.
    source wrote: »
    On another point, when it comes to speeding, there are 2 offences, 1 driving at speed and 2 exceeding the speed limit. For driving at speed the member only has to believe that you were traveling too quickly for the road conditions. In order to prove exceeding the limit a member must be able to state the speed at which you were travelling.
    Usually it is very hard to get a conviction for driving at speed, so a verbal caution about the manner of driving is usually as far as it goes.
    Thanks for the clarification. Wasn't aware of the first offence - good to know.


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