Courts / Dublin / Report

Garda who collided with car while on emergency call has careless driving conviction dismissed

Date
2026-01-28

Stage
Sentence

Primary locality
Dublin

County
Dublin

Summary

Garda Keith Lambe, a roads policing officer with 20 years of emergency driving experience, had his careless driving conviction dismissed on appeal. The District Court Appeals Court heard that Lambe was convicted in the District Court of driving without due care and attention in Clonsilla, Dublin 15, on July 4, 2023, contrary to section 52 of the Road Traffic Act, 1961. He was convicted and fined €500. Lambe subsequently lodged an appeal against this conviction. At the appeal stage, Judge Ronan Munro found that Lambe was acting in the execution of his duty when he collided with a civilian driver at a junction while responding to an emergency call. The judge determined that Lambe was not driving in this manner "for the sake of it" and could not be branded as a criminal. Consequently, the conviction was dismissed. The court noted that while the other driver sustained injuries and suffered significant distress, she had done nothing wrong. The judge commended her for her positive steps and wished her a speedy recovery, while affirming that society expects gardai to respond to emergencies and that Lambe's actions did not constitute criminal behaviour.

Who, what, where, when and why

What: Report matter: Garda who collided with car while on emergency call has careless driving conviction dismissed. Procedural stage: sentence. Findings: Convicted

When:

July 4, 2023 Hearing Or Sentence
2026-01-28 Publication

Why: He said he made the determination that she had remained stationary on the green light because she was aware of the garda vehicle approaching and was allowing him access through the junction. CNI source report