Nearly €13.4M in Dublin unpaid district court fines. Citizens feel it shows disrespect to victims of crime.
A politician wants this included in a criminal justice review. The review is planned for 2025. She says victims of crimes suffer from this. Crimes include drunk driving, assault, and theft.
Some criminals simply ignore the imposed fines. She questions what authorities are actually doing. The unpaid money could fund shelters or safety campaigns. It could also help put more police on streets. She wants a tougher approach to criminals.
Road deaths are rising in Ireland yearly. She wonders how things can improve. People may choose to ignore traffic fines. A 2014 law aimed to recover fines. It started in 2016, but seems ineffective.
She states the courts aren’t using the law’s measures. The act allows taking social welfare or wages. This would help to pay the due fines. Is this actually happening, she asks?
Courts say collecting fines takes time. But over €2.2m from 2020, and €5.5m from 2021, remain unpaid. Here’s a breakdown of unpaid fines by area: Bray has €1.4 million. Cork has €3.2 million unpaid.
Dundalk’s unpaid fines total €1.07 million. Galway has €2.4 million outstanding in fines. Limerick has €3.4 million in unpaid fines. Naas shows €3.7 million in unpaid fines.
Tralee has €1.05 million that remain unpaid. Portlaoise has €1.17 million in unpaid fines. Trim’s unpaid fines reach €1.47 million. Finally, Nenagh has €799,000 still owing.