Re: Fined €160 & €75 costs for no TV licence but never got a summons?
but how would your disability make it difficult to get a licence or go to the courthouse, but allow you to travel to the states.
I didn't go to the courthouse because I never received any notification of a case - no postcard through the door, no letter from an post, no summons, nothing. Just a letter from the district court a few weeks after informing me of my conviction.
Up until my accident/disability I did have a TV licence, paid for it every year. Some time after getting out of hospital & sorting out social welfare, medical card etc., I received a letter stating what benefits I was entitled to - disability benefit, fuel allowance, phone allowance, free travel & free TV licence etc. I received everything except a TV licence & was told that having a free licence doesn't mean being posted an actual licence but being registered "on the system". After contacting the relevent departmant recently, they posted me an A4 sheet stating I have a free TV licence. In fairness, it does include a TV licence number, something I didn't have.
If I'd known there was a problem I would have sorted it well before it went anywhere near a court - it didn't cost me a penny after all.
Just to add a little more information - I got the registered number of the summons sent to me (never received) & an post have confirmed it was never delivered. It was, in fact, returned to the sender (state solicitor's office) where it was signed for. I have all this in writing from an post & have the person's signature who signed for it. So they still went ahead with the prosecution despite knowing a summons hadn't been delivered/received by me.
So, would the person giving evidence against me - either the TV licence inspector or state solicitor have given evidence of the summons being delivered? Was false evidence given in court?
Obviously I'm not familiar with court proceedings having never seen the inside of one but I'm curious as to what actually would have happened/been said?
On the traveling to the US front, I'm not totally paralysed but have a serious disability & very impaired mobility. I can go out (hospital twice a month, at least) but it's difficult at the best of times. I'd jump at the chance (pardon the pun
) to go to the US & to be honest, the only way I could go is with the help of friends/relations. If I'm asked, I WILL be a burden which I'm not most happy about. Imagine if I turn up at an airport & am refused permission to fly/enter the US because of this almighty cock up by both an post & the state solicitor's office!
ps. I hope you don't get grief about the US comment - I understand what you're saying & agree. There are loads of people who don't pay for a TV licence but drive big 4x4s & have plasma TVs. Sadly, I know a few
.
So, can anyone shed some light on what was offered as evidence about a summons being delivered etc.?
Thanks again for the replies
.