Drug driver was arrested after he tried to avoid checkpoint
The defendant pleaded guilty at Castlebar District Court.
A man who was driving while under the influence of cannabis came to the attention of Gardaí after he tried to avoid a checkpoint.
Haroldas Chmieliauskas, aged 33, of Summerhill, Tubbercurry, Co Sligo pleaded guilty at Castlebar District Court to drug driving.
The court heard that Gda Michael Gorman was on duty in the Ballyhaunis area when he saw a Volkswagen Passat disappear down a side road after the driver observed the garda checkpoint. He pursued the vehicle, stopped it at Lurgan, Aghamore and spoke to the driver, Chmieliauskas.
Gda Gorman conducted a roadside drug test that gave a positive reading for cannabis. The defendant was arrested and conveyed to Claremorris Garda Station where a blood sample tested positive for cannabis over the specified legal limit. Chmieliauskas has two previous convictions.
Solicitor Brendan Donnelly said his client works for a multinational medical device company in Co Longford and is very reliant on his car to drive from Tubbercurry to Longford every day.
Judge Fiona Lydon ordered Chmieliauskas to undergo the Prime for Life course and Pro-Social driving course and take a hair follicle test to prove he is drug-free before his next court date on June 4.
