Question on drink driving

jamieh

Hey all,

Just a quick question.....

Lastnight a went for a few scoops, rang a taxi at around 1.45 and he said I'd have to wait till 2.15 for a spin.

It was pissing rain and I had left my car in the pubs car park so I decided to sit in the car for the 30 mins.

So, I sat in the passenger seat (just incase) and turned the key just one notch to turn on the radio.

While I was sitting there the thought crossed my mind..what if a guard knocked on the window? Would I have been done for drink driving?

I obviously had no intention (and would never ever would have the intention) to drink drive. I was innocently sitting in the car waiting on a taxi!

jimmycrackcorm

Had a Garda stopped you could have said you were waiting for the driver.

vengeance52

AFAIK, if your in the car by yourself, and keys in the ignition, your responsible and can be done for drink drivin. not 100% so we will see what others have to say

Seth Brundle

As the law stands, if you are in control of the vehicle whilst over the limit then you are in trouble.
Sitting in the passenger seat with the key in the ignition is AFAIK still being in control.

jamieh

kbannon wrote: »

As the law stands, if you are in control of the vehicle whilst over the limit then you are in trouble.
Sitting in the passenger seat with the key in the ignition is AFAIK still being in control.

You'd want to be some driver to control the car from the passenger seat

Stky10

From what I know, having the keys in the ignition, no matter if you're in the back seat is grounds enough for prosecution if you're over the limit. I've read court cases in the paper that have shown this to be true.

Last week though one of the lads in work was saying that a garda told him that even having the keys inside the car while over the limit signified "intent" and could lead to prosecution, and the only way around this was to keep the keys outside the car (behind a tyre for instance).

Yes it defies logic in some ways, but the law is the law, ass or not.

Seth Brundle

jamieh wrote: »

You'd want to be some driver to control the car from the passenger seat

Being in control has nothing to do with driving.

ian_m

Could be done for being in charge of a vehicle while under the influence.

craichoe

Yup, can get done in this case and its the same in every EU Country.

Best thing you can do is

1. Put the keys in the boot (If you have a boot release inside your car) and sleep in the passanger seat.

Bizarrely i fell asleep in my dads car in the same scenario, the garda asked if it was my car, i said no. Next question was, could i drive and did i have my license. I said no, i have a motorcycle.

He said i was lucky because i did not have the means nor the intention to operate the vehicle as

A. It wasn't mine
B. I couldn't drive.

It was either that or sleep in the bushes before we drove off to cork !

peasant

That's a bit silly alright ...

What would happen, if I park my camper up for the night in a parking lot somewhere, curtains drawn and all and then decide to have 2/3 beers before going to bed.

If a guard knocked at the door, I'd be in there, slightly drunk, the keys would be in there somewhere (I wouldn't leave them outside, obviously ) ...would I deemed to be in charge / in control of the camper ?

Don't tell me I'd have to sleep outside ...:eek:

ballooba

I sometimes sleep in the van on weekends away. This would be fairly common in watersports circles. I would (more) often (than not) have a feed of pints on board. I would have the key in the ignition to inflater the air matress and maybe to put on the (remote controlled) stereo. It's never crossed my mind that i could be done.

Our man in Havana

Is the cab on a camper separate to the sleeping area?

peasant

no, not usually

galwaytt

peasant wrote: »

That's a bit silly alright ...

What would happen, if I park my camper up for the night in a parking lot somewhere, curtains drawn and all and then decide to have 2/3 beers before going to bed.

If a guard knocked at the door, I'd be in there, slightly drunk, the keys would be in there somewhere (I wouldn't leave them outside, obviously ) ...would I deemed to be in charge / in control of the camper ?

Don't tell me I'd have to sleep outside ...:eek:

oooh, that's a good one - never thought of that. But technically, yes, I suppose you could be done........

Alkers

Does this only apply if the vehicle is parked on a public road then? Or can one be done for drink driving on private property?

Gary ITR

I was asleep in the back of my van and a guard knocked on my door and told me i could be done for drink driving. He told me the best thing to do would be to leave the keys under the car or something, hide them outside.

voxpop

Does this not seem ridiculous to anyone else. If you are asleep in a car you can be done for drink driving!!
What if you dont have a licence - are you then in trouble for operating a vehicle without a licence!

OldmanMondeo

voxpop wrote: »

What if you dont have a licence - are you then in trouble for operating a vehicle without a licence!

Some thing like that yes. Means you can't leave the kids locked in the car while your in the pub....

RobAMerc

Its surely just as illegal to try drive a car from the passenger seat no ?

So why do you think he would be more interested in catching you drink driving than any other law you may have been breaking ?

The cops are reasonable people too. You were doing the right thing and they wouldn't have bothered you I imagine. Plus when a taxi pulled up booked in your name you'd have been vindicated surely.

In cases you hear of people being done for getting into a car while drunk - I think generally there's more to the story than your hearing.

Sizzler

Isnt there some nuance in the law that states if you are in a parked car with windows up / door locked and a Guard knocks on the window that you have no obligation to respond, i.e. they cant break into the car to get you out etc.

Might be complete horseshoite but seem to remember a lad telling me that after a stint in Templemore about 5 years ago.

wet-paint

I regularly sleep in the fiesta if I'm too blitzed to drive home. Was woken one morning by a cop who recognised the car (she knows my mam) and started laughing when she saw the sleeping bag poking out of the boot and all over the back seat.
As said, they're reasonable people, and if it's plainly obvious that you're sleeping - shoes off, in sleeping bag, eye cover thing keeping the sun out, even stinking of beer, I've been let off. I asked her if she'd have done anything if she didn't know me, and she said of course not, sure you were fast asleep til I knocked on the window and woke you, you weren't going anywhere.

Seth Brundle

Simona1986 wrote: »

Does this only apply if the vehicle is parked on a public road then? Or can one be done for drink driving on private property?

Public places only (pub car parks presumably count as public places)

JoeySully

Reminds me of one time i had to sleep in a car overnight after a few scoops - it was a bit cold and i had no sleepin bag so turned on the engine to heat it up. woke up at sunrise car roastin and engine still running -
dont think i would have got away with that on if a cop pulled up. funny thing was i was parked across from a garda station

endplate

kbannon wrote: »

Public places only (pub car parks presumably count as public places)

Car parks are generally privately owned. If you have an accident in a car park and you call the Garda they don't usually bother coming out as it's between the car owners once nobody is hurt. Garda can still enforce DD rules on private property tho usually after following a suspect on the road first.

Our man in Havana

The key to the issue here is the definition of a public place.

Public places include all places to which the public normally have access to. So this would include supermarket carparks, pub carparks etc which are privately owned. The Road Traffic Act applies to all public places.

There is nothing to stop you sleeping drunk in your vehicle sitting in your driveway provided it is off the public road as this is not a public place, i.e. the public do not normally have access to your house.

cormie

Same with you peasant with my van, I don't drink, but just out of curiosity, if someone went for a kip in the back of my van who had a few drinks on them, what would happen? Also take into account that it is illegal for anyone to be in the back of my van if the van is being driven.

Can a drunk who was arrested and put into the back of a garda van then be done for intent to drink drive if the gardai left the keys in the ignition?

Sounds kinda silly but if one is possible, then why not the other?

Im A Hotmail

Technically you can get done for anything these days..

If you explained your situation to a Guard, there wouldn't by any problem i'm sure.

Our man in Havana

I know of one case where a guest at a wedding (staying in the hotel), went back to his car to retrieve something from the boot. He opened the boot and was then approached by 2 Gardaí sitting across the road. He was breath tested and failed the test. The guest was arrested and charged with drunk in charge. He was fined IR£500 and got banned for 12 months. The fact he had the keys in his possession led to the conviction.

TKK

I drove the car to the local village a few years back as it was raining and there was no one home to give me a lift. I left my jacket in the back seat of the car as it was only a few yards into the pub.

When, after several pints, I was moving on to the nightclub in the next town (using regular Saturday night local bus) I went to the car to retrieve my jacket. Unknown to me there were 2 guards in an unmarked car right accross from it. As soon as I pressed the button and unlocked the car one of them jumped out and headed over to me. I wasn't taking a bit of notice and didn't hear him approach due to noise coming from the pub so by the time he had crossed over I had opened the back door, grabbed my jacket, locked the car and was putting the keys in my pocket while turning to find him standing there. He just said I was damn lucky that was all I had done with regard to the car. I've no doubt that if I had gotten into the car for any reason (e.g. to get something out of the glovebox) I would have been done for it. Annoyed the hell out of me considering I have never and would never drive with drink on board.

unkel

Bond-007 wrote: »

I know of one case where a guest at a wedding (staying in the hotel), went back to his car to retrieve something from the boot. He opened the boot and was then approached by 2 Gardaí sitting across the road. He was breath tested and failed the test. The guest was arrested and charged with drunk in charge. He was fined IR£500 and got banned for 12 months. The fact he had the keys in his possession led to the conviction.

Has the world gone mad?

wet-paint

I'd blame the judge for that particular abortion.