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Sixties musician Donovan has been found guilty of dangerous driving after a fellow motorist reported him to gardaí when he veered repeatedly on to his incorrect side of the road in west Cork.
Donovan (77), best known for songs such as Catch The Wind, Mellow Yellow and Hurdy Gurdy Man, appeared under his full name Donovan Leith of the Old Rectory, Castlemagner, Co Cork at Skibbereen District Court on three separate driving related charges relating to his driving on February 11th 2023.
Mr Leith denied dangerous driving at Smorane, Skibbereen, attempting to drive while under the influence of an intoxicant to such an extent that he could not properly control a car at Aghills, Skibbereen and failing to comply with a request to give a breath sample at Bantry Garda station.
Prosecution witness, Veronica Whooley told the court that she was travelling with her husband from Skibbereen towards Leap at around 8pm on the night in question when they noticed the car in front of them crossing over to its incorrect side of the road including as it approached a bad bend.
Ms Whooley said that the driving was so bad with the car veering on to its incorrect side of the road that oncoming cars had to slow down and she became so concerned for the driver and other road users that she rang the gardaí to report the matter to them.
Garda Daniel Quinlan of Skibbereen Garda station told how he took the call from Ms Whooley and noted the registration of the car before he proceeded with a colleague to Aghills, Skibbereen where he came upon the car partially pulled in on the hard shoulder and partially on the road.
He approached the car and noticed that the lights were on and the engine running and when he spoke to the driver, Mr Leith, he appeared very disoriented and his eyes were glazed and bloodshot and he got a smell of alcohol from Mr Leith who kept saying ‘I’m fine, I’m fine’.
He said Mr Leith asked him “if everyone was okay and if he had damaged any person or property” and he informed that he had not as far he (Garda Quinlan) knew and Mr Leith proceeded to give him his name, his address and his date of birth and while his speech was slurred, it wasn’t overly slurred.
He saw an open half empty bottle of wine in the console of the car and when he asked Mr Leith where he was and he said he didn’t know, he informed him he had formed the opinion that he was incapable of being in proper control of the car due to an intoxicant and he arrested him at 8.30pm.
He cautioned Mr Leith after informing him he was arresting him but Mr Leith made no reply so he and his colleague assisted Mr Leith from his car into the patrol car as he was unsteady on his feet and they conveyed him to Bantry Garda station.
“En route, he apologised repeatedly for making a mistake and he asked to be brought to his hotel – he told us he was on Tommy Tiernan that night and we didn’t know what we were doing and to think of our families and to forget the whole thing – that was the vein of what he was saying.”
Garda Quinlan said he handed Mr Leith over to Garda Louise Kingston at Bantry Garda station and Garda Colm Spring said he observed Mr Leith for 20 minutes before asking him to blow into the alkalizer and Mr Leith made two attempts to use it but did not have enough breath for it to work.
Garda Kingston said she rang SouthDoc at 10.20pm to get a doctor to take a blood or urine sample from Mr Leith but a doctor rang back at 11pm to say they would not be there until 12.30am so they dispensed with the GP as that would have been outside the permitted three hours to take a sample.
Garda Quinlan charged Mr Leith with being drunk in charge of a vehicle to which he replied, “I’m sorry, yes, I agree’ and he charged him with failing or refusing to comply with a request to provide a breath sample to which he replied, ‘I’m sorry’.
Garda Spring said in his direct evidence that Mr Leith appeared to him to be under the influence of an intoxicant, but he said he was making honest effort to blow into the akalizer but simply did not have the breath to do so properly and the machine registered the test as being incomplete.
Respiratory consultant, Prof Oisin O’Connell said he examined Mr Leith in May 2023 and found he was suffering from severe Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease and Restrictive Lung Disease while his right diaphragm was seven cms shorter than his left all of which resulted in reduced lung capacity.
Defence counsel, Michael McGrath SC made a number of submissions on each of the charges including that Prof O’Connell’s evidence offered a clear and recognised defence on failing to give a breath sample and Judge James McNulty agreed and struck out the failing to give a sample charge.
However, Judge McNulty said he found Ms Whooley a credible and convincing witness and he commended her for moral bravery in doing her civic duty and ringing gardaí about Mr Leith’s driving as she was concerned about his own safety and those of other road users.
Judge McNulty convicted Mr Leith of dangerous driving but adjourned the issue of penalty while he reserved judgment on the final charge of attempt to drive while under the influence of an intoxicant and he adjourned the matter to Skibberean District Court on February 13th 2024.
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