Road Traffic (Amendment) Act, 1978

Obligation to provide urine specimen at Garda station.

17.—(1) Whenever a member of the Garda Síochána is of the opinion that a person in charge of a mechanically propelled vehicle is under the influence of a drug or drugs to such an extent as to be incapable of having proper control of the vehicle, he may require the person to accompany him to a Garda station.

(2) A person who refuses or fails to comply with a requirement under subsection (1) shall be guilty of an offence and liable on summary conviction to imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months or, at the discretion of the court, to a fine not exceeding £500, or to both.

(3) A member of the Garda Síochána may arrest without warrant a person who in the member's opinion is committing or has committed an offence under subsection (2) and shall forthwith bring the person to a Garda station.

(4) Where a person is in a Garda station pursuant to subsection (1) or has been arrested under subsection (3), a member of the Garda Síochána may require the person to provide a specimen of his urine for a designated registered medical practitioner.

(5) A person who, following a requirement under subsection (4) refuses or fails to provide for a designated registered medical practitioner a specimen of the person's urine, shall be guilty of an offence and liable on summary conviction to imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months or, at the discretion of the court, to a fine not exceeding £500, or to both.