Hundreds of Victorians charged with drink driving offences have had their hopes dashed by the Court of Appeal.The court this morning closed a legal loophole that has vexed prosecutors for months. It means the backlog of similar cases could finally begin to move through the courts - unless an appeal is launched in the High Court.
The decision overruled a case where two drivers, Joe Piscopo and Ramzan Rukandin, were let off the hook for allegedly refusing to submit to breath and blood tests. The Supreme Court had held the charges against the men were invalid because they were not told they only had to stay with police for three hours. But if police do not take a sample within three hours, drivers are free to go - and police are supposed to tell them this. Both Piscopo and Rukandin has their cases thrown out by the magistrate's courts because they were not told of the three-hour limit. Prosecutors appealed to the Supreme Court, which upheld the magistrates' decisions.
But the Court of Appeal held that officers' failure to tell the drivers about the time limit did not invalidate the charges against them.Barrister Warwick Walsh-Buckley did not rule out another appeal."I think there's something to go to the High Court over,"
But it would depend on whether Piscopo was willing and able to fund an appeal, he said; "the DPP has deep pockets." Police could soon start prosecuting the hundreds of similar cases left in limbo.
A police spokeswoman said in a statement:
"Failure to provide a breath test is a very serious offence and police continue to charge any person who does not comply with this law. "Victorians should be assured that anyone who thinks they might escape justice by choosing to refuse a breath test will be charged and subject to penalties according to law."
Source: Herald Sun 9 September 2011
