Kyle Hayes, a celebrated hurler from Limerick, Ireland, has been ordered to appear before a court in September after being accused of hazardous driving on the N20 in County Cork. The 26-year-old faced charges at Mallow District Court on Tuesday under Section 53 of the Road Traffic Act 2011.
Hayes, a resident of Ballyashea, Kildimo in County Limerick, is suspected of displaying dangerous driving behaviour on the main road between Cork and Limerick, specifically at Lissavoura, Grenagh on July 14th. His lawyer, Liam Carroll BL, stated that Hayes was prepared to admit to a minor offence of careless driving regarding the incident, provided the court approved.
Nevertheless, Judge Colm Roberts expressed his desire to analyse the evidence prior to certain any concessions regarding accepting Hayes’s admission of guilt on the downgraded charge. As the judge pointed out, a practice he considered deceptive – reducing dangerous driving charges to careless driving – was frequently occurring across the nation, something he had regrettably encountered previously. Furthermore, Roberts emphasised the severity of a dangerous driving accusation, and his reluctance to reduce it without first considering the evidence.
Sgt. Linda O’Leary requested a postponement to enable the charging officer to provide full details on the matter; she proposed a new date of September 10th. The judge concurred, stressing his low tolerance for the reduction of dangerous driving charges, and scheduled the hearing for the aforementioned date.