Incorrectly Accussed of Parking Offence Summons Received

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kellyr4

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Below are the details of what happened.

My girlfriend received a fine in the post for parking illegaly on a road in Dun Laoghaire. The date of the alledged incident was 2nd March 2007.

However, as she lives on the other side of the city and is very rarely in the Dun Laoghaire area she is adamant that the Guard must have taken down the wrong reg number.

She wrote a letter to the Guard who issued the ticket stating that she was nowhere near the Dun Laoghaire area on that date. Stupidly she never kept of copy of the letter. I have given her awful grief for not holding a copy.

Anyway she heard nothing else about this issue until last Monday 9th June when a summons arrived. She is due in court next Monday 16th June. However the issue date on the summons is 3rd December 2007.

She rang the Superindentant of the station this morning and he had a look at the file. He said that the car in question had been parked illegally in Dun Laoghaire for 3 days in a row and that is why the Guard issued the ticket. This confirms that it definitely was not her car.

My questions are:

Why did she not receive the summons until now? Does she not need a months notice before a court date?

Should the Guard have responded to her letter to let her know more about the issue? As he is a Traffic Guard he was impossible to contact by phone after numerous attempts and leaving her number with the station

Does she have to show up in court next monday?
 
Why did she not receive the summons until now? Does she not need a months notice before a court date?

Should the Guard have responded to her letter to let her know more about the issue? As he is a Traffic Guard he was impossible to contact by phone after numerous attempts and leaving her number with the station

Does she have to show up in court next monday?
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What did the superintendant have to say when asked the above questions ?
 
He said hed look into the details and call her back later today. He said she should have gotten a least 1 month's notice.
 
Firstly, I would insist that the Garda does not pursue the summons and if not happy with the reply, I would seek advice of a Solicitor.
 
If she doesn't turn up in court the judge could issue a bench warrant for her arrest and she would be in more bother. She is better to go to a solicitor who deals with District Court work. It might be possible for the solicitor to get the gardai to withdraw the summons. I think it is up to 4 penalty points on conviction for illegal parking so that has its own consequences.
 
There are no penalty points for parking offences. Also no judge would issue a bench warrant for a parking matter. The person would be convicted in absentia.
 
bond-007 said:
There are no penalty points for parking offences. Also no judge would issue a bench warrant for a parking matter. The person would be convicted in absentia.
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Dangerous parking carries 5 penalty points on conviction and i believe there are other parking offences which also carry penalty points but i am open to correction in this regard. Unlikely that a judge would issue a bench warrant but it is still better for OP to seek representation to deal with the matter
 
At the very least, turn up in court with as much evidence as possible as to why this could not have been your car. You should have a good chance of getting off. If you do not turn up, you will be found guilty.
 
Tell her to turn up in court (well dressed) and explain everything to the judge - where she lives & works, and the efforts she made to get it sorted etc. Otherwise, as others have said, she will be convicted, and fines for people who don't turn up tend to be hefty.

Would she have been in work on those dates? If so, she could get a letter from work stating that she was in work (hopefully nowhere near Dun Laoghaire), especially if the car was parked there during work hours.
 
If its a case of mistaken identity - wrote down wrong reg, then she should be able to prove it easily. If the Garda who issued the ticket is asked about the colour and make of the car in Court, it is unlikely that he will get it right. The chances of two cars being the same make, same year and same colour and similar reg places - maybe 1 digit difference - is very very slim. Garda will also look very dim.

"Describe the car you issued the ticket to?"

".....it was a blue ford focus......"

"But the car with this registration number is a red Honda Civic?"

"Ohh.........I must have made a mistake...."
 
It is important not to mention anything until the Garda has given his evidence and it is your turn to cross examine the witness.
 
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