A Co Donegal man will not be prosecuted on a speeding charge because of a failure to issue to him the speeding notice and other relevant documents in his native Irish language.
The prosecution of Mr Eamonn Mac Giolla Chomhaill, from Gaoth Dobhair, will not proceed, the High Court was told today when it was informed that proceedings challenging that prosecution could be struck out on consent of both Mr Mac Giolla Chomhaill and the Director of Public Prosecutions.
The court also heard that the Coimisineir Teanga, Mr Sean O'Curreain, has received a commitment from the Garda Commissioner that bilingual copies of speeding notices - Fixed Penalty Notices (FPN) - are being distributed to gardaí so that members of the public who wish to conduct their business in Irish may do so.
Mr Mac Giolla Chomhaill, a builder, was stopped for alleged speeding in February 2005, but the fixed penalty notice issued to him was in English.
Mr Mac Giolla Chomhaill said he was so shocked to receive the notice at the time that it was only the following day that he noticed it was in English. He is a fluent Irish speaker who only learned English in his teenage years and he conducts all his daily business through Irish, he said.
On receipt of an FPN, the person named in the notice has 28 days to pay the fine of €80. If the fine is not paid within that time, a prosecution is initiated.
Mr Mac Giolla Chomhaill sought a copy of the FPN in Irish but this was not sent to him within the 28 day time limit. A prosecution was then initiated - which Mr Mac Giolla Chomhaill then challenged in judicial review proceedings.
He claimed the failure to send him the FPN in his first language, and the failure of the State authorities to provide other relevant documents in Irish as sought by his solicitor, deprived him of the option of paying the fine in time and accepting the points.
The failure to provide the documents in Irish meant he was prejudiced and disadvantaged, he contended. His solicitor had written to Government Publications seeking copies in Irish of the relevant Road Traffic Acts and amendments to District Court rules but was told these were not available, he said.
In court yesterday, Mr Luan O Braonain, for the DPP, Garda Commissioner, Ireland and the Attorney General, said the action had been settled between the parties, and the proceedings could be struck out.
Meanwhile, Fine Gael Transport Spokeswoman Olivia Mitchell, warned of a potential deluge of legal challenges to road traffic offences because of Mr Mac Giolla Chomhaill's case.
Ms Mitchell said that now that public attention had been made aware that the Road Traffic Act is not available in Irish it could potentially lead to further court challenges.
"A Supreme Court judgment in 2001 did indicate that while the public was not entitled to have an entire case heard in Irish, it is entitled to have all documentation, including legislation and court rules, provided in Irish," she said.
"The Road Traffic Act may be just one of many pieces of legislation that is in breach of the Official Languages Act. This could potentially lead to further court challenges or judicial reviews in road traffic and other cases?" she added.