“totally unacceptable” to abuse a taxi driver who was “doing his work”

Man gets suspended sentence for abuse of taxi driver

Galway Advertiser, April 02, 2009.



By Martina Nee
Trusting and respecting your taxi driver is a lesson that was hard
learnt by a Ballinrobe man who received a suspended sentence this
week for “totally unacceptable” public order offences. A drunk and
abusive Patrick Grimes kicked up a stink when he accused a taxi
driver of taking a longer and more expensive route. The 27-year-
old, originally from Cornmarket, Ballinrobe, Mayo, but living at 18 Lios
Cuiseul, Ballybrit, Galway, was brought before Galway District Court
last Monday charged with being intoxicated in a public place and with
threatening and abusive behaviour at University Road on
March 7, 2009.

Inspector Michael Coppinger told the court that at 1.05am a taxi
driver phoned the gardai complaining of problems he was having
with passengers. When gardai arrived at University Road they
found the defendant to be very drunk and abusive. He added that
the defendant, who had attempted to run away, did pay the fare.
Defence solicitor Valerie Corcoran said that her client had been out
with his girlfriend having a few drinks and they got a taxi to go home.
However, Grimes thought that the taxi driver was taking a “long
and more expensive route”. Ms Corcoran added that it turns out the
driver had actually taken the short route.

The defendant has seven previous convictions which include public order
offences in June 2006, an offence under Section 9(1) of the Firearms
and Offensive Weapons Act, theft in March 2006, and drug possession in
2004. Ms Corcoran said that after the last conviction Grimes did attend
an addiction counsellor and has not come to the attention of gardai in
three years. In view of his previous convictions Judge Fahy convicted the defendant and imposed a three months sentence suspended for 12 months
on condition that he enter a bond of €300 to be of good behaviour. For
being intoxicated in a public place he was fined €200. Judge Fahy noted
that it was “totally unacceptable” to abuse a taxi driver who was “doing his work”.