A judge used the recent scrapping of the cervical cancer vaccine as a reason not to offer legal aid to a man convicted of drink driving in the District Court last week (November 6 ).
Before Judge Neilan was Sigitas Adomavicius (33 ), with an address at Ballywillan, Granard, Co Longford who was pleading guilty to the charge after being arrested in the early hours of June 15 on Dominick Street and returning an intoxiliser reading of 66 microgrammes of alcohol per 100 millilitres of breath.
His solicitor Breege Mimnagh sought a deferral of the ban until the new year to allow her client to move closer to work.
As Adomavicius had been co-operative and had no previous convictions, Judge Neilan granted this request but warned: “If there’s any suggestion that he abuses the privilege by drinking and driving the matter will be addressed in this court very quickly.”
Seeing a slight chink, Ms Mimnagh decided to push her luck a touch further.
“If you’ll forgive the indulgence, judge, in the words of the late Peter Connellan: ‘When I’m stepping on toes I may squeeze a bit more’,” as she attempted to apply for legal aid.
However, having heard in earlier evidence that the defendant earned about €369 per week, Judge Neilan was not disposed to allow this.
“If a vaccination is removed from 12-year-old girls because the kitty is empty, I can’t offer legal aid to a man earning €369,” said the judge.
