Irish cops tripped up by Prawo Jazdy dragnet

Mr Driving Licence clocks up 50 motoring offences

By Lester Haines • Get more from this author

Posted in Policing, 19th February 2009 12:09 GMT

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Irish cops have finally uncovered the identity of one of the Emerald Isle's "most reckless drivers" - a Pole who had by June 2007 clocked up over 50 speeding fines and parking tickets on the Garda Pulse computer system without once being convicted of a crime against motoring.

The penny finally droppped when a Garda traffic division operative discovered that Prawo Jazdy "is actually the Polish for driving licence and not the first and surname on the licence".

He elaborated: "Having noticed this I decided to check on Pulse and see how many members have made this mistake. It is quite embarrassing to see that the system has created Prawo Jazdy as a person with over 50 identities.

"He can also be found on the Fixed Charge Processing System as well. This mistake needs to be rectified immediately and a memo sent to the members concerned."

According to the Irish Times, the gaffe was because the Poles phased out the old paper licence in 2004, and replaced it with the EU credit card-style model - which carries the words "Prawo Jazdy" write large at the top.

The holder's actual name appears underneath in somewhat smaller letters, the Times notes.

The Pulse system has now been suitably updated with a new section "advising officers of the layout of foreign driving licences". ®