Prison for driver caught without insurance twice
Carlow Courthouse Photo: Michael O'Rourke
A MOTORIST from Carlow town was handed a custodial sentence and put off the road for eight years when he pleaded guilty before the local district court to two offences of driving without insurance.
Justin Snoddy, 2 Blackbog Grove, Carlow pleaded guilty to not having insurance coverage when he was stopped by gardaí on Hanover Road, Carlow on 16 April last year and again on 8 July 2024 when he was spotted driving by gardaí on the Castlecomer Road, Carlow.
Sgt Hud Kelly told Judge Geraldine Carthy that Mr Snoddy (35) had 15 previous convictions, including for not having insurance.
Solicitor John O’Sullivan told the judge that there had been a breakdown in Mr Snoddy’s relationship and that he was going through a “rough patch” at the time. When he asked Judge Carthy if she would adjourn sentencing so that a probation report could be prepared, she replied that she didn’t need one, given that Mr Snoddy had 15 previous convictions, including two for no insurance.
She added that another aggravating factor was that the defendant had been caught twice by gardaí within weeks and that Mr Snoddy “had chosen to drive uninsured on a number of occasions, putting others at risk”.
She then sentenced him to four months’ imprisonment and disqualified him from driving for eight years.
Recognisances were fixed in the event of an appeal.
