Latest news with #Drager
Sunday World
28-06-2025
- Sunday World
Man has drug driving conviction overturned after garda failed to say whether drug test was done
Jordan Lanigan (25) with an address at Darndale, Dublin 17, had pleaded not guilty to driving under the influence of drugs. A man has had his conviction for driving under the influence of cannabis overturned on appeal, after a judge found the prosecuting garda had failed to say whether he witnessed the roadside drug test actually being completed. Jordan Lanigan (25) with an address at Darndale, Dublin 17, had pleaded not guilty to driving under the influence of drugs in the District Court. Garda Fergal McSharry told the District Court Appeals Court that he was on patrol on Clonshaugh Road, Dublin 17 at 3.15pm on March 4, 2019, when he stopped a driver who he had observed with a mobile phone to his ear. A stock image of a roadside drug test. News in 90 Seconds - June 28th Garda McSharry said he smelled the scent of cannabis from the car and that he tested Mr Lanigan's oral sample on a Drager drug test machine, which he said returned a positive result. Mr Lanigan was arrested under section 4(1) of the Road Traffic Act 2010 and taken to Coolock Garda Station. Garda McSharry said that at the station, a doctor proceeded to take a blood test which the court heard later returned a positive result for cannabis. Mr Lanigan was convicted in the District Court on March 14, 2024, for drug driving under section 4(1)a of the Road Traffic Act 2010. He was disqualified from driving for one year and given a €300 fine. At the District Court Appeals Court, Judge Jonathan Dunphy said there was no specific evidence given by Garda McSharry that Mr Lanigan actually took the drug test, only that he handed him the test and Mr Lanigan handed it back. He said that the Garda's evidence of: 'I handed it to him and he handed it back to me' was insufficient as there is no evidence that Mr Lanigan put the test in his mouth and did what was required of him to complete the test. Judge Dunphy said it is an essential element of the whole procedure and he cannot infer that the test was done or not. He said that without direct evidence from the garda, the test may have been refused and handed back uncompleted. Judge Dunphy decided to allow the appeal of the conviction from the District Court. Funded by the Courts Reporting Scheme.
Irish Independent
28-06-2025
- Irish Independent
Man has drug driving conviction overturned after garda failed to say whether drug test was done
Jordan Lanigan (25) with an address at Darndale, Dublin 17, had pleaded not guilty to driving under the influence of drugs in the District Court. Garda Fergal McSharry told the District Court Appeals Court that he was on patrol on Clonshaugh Road, Dublin 17 at 3.15pm on March 4, 2019, when he stopped a driver who he had observed with a mobile phone to his ear. Garda McSharry said he smelled the scent of cannabis from the car and that he tested Mr Lanigan's oral sample on a Drager drug test machine, which he said returned a positive result. Mr Lanigan was arrested under section 4(1) of the Road Traffic Act 2010 and taken to Coolock Garda Station. Garda McSharry said that at the station, a doctor proceeded to take a blood test which the court heard later returned a positive result for cannabis. Mr Lanigan was convicted in the District Court on March 14, 2024, for drug driving under section 4(1)a of the Road Traffic Act 2010. He was disqualified from driving for one year and given a €300 fine. At the District Court Appeals Court, Judge Jonathan Dunphy said there was no specific evidence given by Garda McSharry that Mr Lanigan actually took the drug test, only that he handed him the test and Mr Lanigan handed it back. He said that the Garda's evidence of: 'I handed it to him and he handed it back to me' was insufficient as there is no evidence that Mr Lanigan put the test in his mouth and did what was required of him to complete the test. Judge Dunphy said it is an essential element of the whole procedure and he cannot infer that the test was done or not. He said that without direct evidence from the garda, the test may have been refused and handed back uncompleted. Judge Dunphy decided to allow the appeal of the conviction from the District Court.
Yahoo
18-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Indiana bill creating THC threshold for intoxicated driving advances with bipartisan support
A bill aiming to target drivers under the influence of THC in Indiana has surpassed another legislative step. House Bill 1119 was approved by the Indiana House on Tuesday in an 84-10 bipartisan vote. The bill, if passed into law, would allow results from two specific saliva tests that check for traces of THC and other drugs as admissible evidence in court. Lawmakers have specified the tests as the Drager DrugTest 5000 or SoToxa Oral Fluid Mobile Test System. The Drager exam shows positive results for a minimum of 5 nanograms of THC while the SoToxa returns positive for 25 milligrams. Current law would charge someone with intoxicated driving if they had any trace of THC in a blood sample – a method that supporters of the bill argue is more time-consuming, costly and clogs the Indiana State Police labs. The bill will now go to the Senate. The proposal is one of the only bills pertaining to anything marijuana-related that's moving forward in the Statehouse. Other bills aimed at decriminalizing and legalizing marijuana failed their first hurdle toward becoming law, matching an annual trend. Lawmakers file bills to legalize marijuana every year, but none of the measures ever pass, and former Gov. Eric Holcomb through his tenure said he would not take steps to legalize marijuana while it remained an illicit substance at the federal level. More: Marijuana, immigration: Bills that have died in the Indiana legislature, so far Evansville Republican Rep. Wendy McNamara, one of the bill's authors, has said her motivation is to target intoxicated drivers through toxicologist-approved tests, referring to THC as 'one of the trickiest things I've ever tried to nail down' when the bill was still in committee. 'I think this is the next horizon, the next step in how we test for impairment in the State of Indiana while making sure that there's some reliability around that,' she said. The bill carries a Class C misdemeanor penalty for violators, which escalates to a felony if the driver causes serious bodily injury or death behind the wheel. Police cannot arrest someone solely because of a positive test, the proposal clarifies, but the results can be admitted in court for a jury to decide how much weight to put into the results. Contact IndyStar reporter Sarah Nelson at This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Indiana bill creating THC threshold for impaired driving advances
