Source: All England Reporter
Publisher Citation: [2009] All ER (D) 24 (Nov)
Neutral Citation: [2009] EWHC 2165 (Admin)
Court: Queen's Bench Division, Divisional Court
Judge:

Sir Anthony May P and Dobbs J
Representation Michael Gray (solicitor advocate, Oliver & Co, Chester) for the appellant.
  Sion ap Mihangel (instructed by the Director of Public Prosecutions) for the respondent.
Judgment Dates: 18 March 2009

Catchwords

Road traffic - Breath test - Failure to provide specimen - Appellant requesting legal advice from duty solicitor call centre prior to providing specimen - Officers informing appellant procedure could not be delayed - Appellant failing to provide specimen - Solicitor contacting police station while procedure underway and told to call back later - Appellant seeking to have evidence of procedure excluded on basis right to legal advice as soon as practicable breached - Justices rejecting submission and convicting appellant - Whether justices erring - ss 58, 78 - s 7(6).

The Case

Road traffic Breath test. Dismissing the appellant's appeal by way of case stated, the Divisional Court held that, as the relevant authorities made clear, there was no duty on the police to delay the taking of a specimen of breath pending a suspect receiving legal advice. In the light of those authorities, and on the facts, the police in the instant case had been entitled to conclude that it would neither be practicable nor in the public interest to interrupt the test procedure so that legal advice could be given; there had been no breach of s58 of the .

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