A Galway city man has been banned from driving for life and sentenced to two years in prison - the maximum that can be imposed in the District Court - for driving without insurance on six occasions.
John Dodd (33), Newcastle, Galway, has 24 previous convictions for the same offence. He denied all of the latest charges brought against him by three gardaí and a detective garda at Galway District Court yesterday.
As each of the gardaí gave evidence of the occasions they had stopped him, Dodd denied he had been driving various cars mentioned in evidence on various dates in 2001 and 2002 around Galway city. "They are pulling charges out of nowhere against me - from bales of hay - as far as I'm concerned," he said at one stage.
Dodd also denied being in possession of €70 worth of cannabis resin when detained for the purpose of a search on March 13th last by Det Jarleth Burke. Det Burke said Dodd had admitted the cannabis was for his own use but he then refused to sign a statement to that effect. He admitted at the time to driving without insurance.
Dodd did plead guilty to being in possession of cannabis on December 19th, 2002, and to obstructing another detective in the process of a search.
Passing sentence, Judge Mary Fahy said the accused had serious convictions for driving without insurance. "He has no qualms going out and driving without insurance. He thinks he is above the law," the judge said.
She noted Dodd had been disqualified from driving for four years in June 2002, for other insurance offences, and was disqualified at the time of these latest offences.