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Andy Powell Dropped From Wales Rugby Squad For Drunken Golf Buggy Arrest

Total views: 14 Word Count: 330 Date: Sat, 20 Feb 2010 Time: 8:02 AM - 0 comments

Andy Powell, one of the stars of the Welsh Rugby team was taken into custody by South Wales Police in the early hours of Sunday morning and charged with "driving a mechanically propelled vehicle whilst unfit through drink" under the Road Traffic Act 1988. He was discovered drink driving a stolen golf buggy on the hard shoulder of the M4 just 3 miles from his club's hotel.

Powell, 28, was taken into custody before 6am at a motorway service station three miles from the club's national hotel in the Vale of Glamorgan. The back-row forward had reportedly taken the 15mph vehicle after an all night drinking binge with his teammates and driven it down the hard shoulder of the motorway in order to find food as the hotel was not serving breakfast until 7am.

A spokesman for the Welsh rugby union has stated that Powell has been "suspended from the squad for behaviour contrary to the squad's code of conduct".

It is not uncommon for athletes to avoid prosecution especially for driving offences but the circumstances of Powell's arrest make for a very grey are;. There is no clear definition of a 'mechanically propelled vehicle' and there is no strict legal alcohol limit for operating any of them.

Nick Freeman, commonly known as 'Mr Loophole' commented that "this could lead to an anomaly where someone is driving a mechanically propelled vehicle, which is not a motor vehicle, whilst over the prescribed limit".

Powell risks losing his driving licence along with a hefty fine but some argue that crimes committed in one vehicle category should not affect your licence for another; with the right legal aid the rugby star could get off the hook but will most likely need a strong defence case.

Should the legal grey areas be exploited Powell could avoid prosecution for drink driving and instead face a lesser charge of theft for which he was not originally arrested.

Article Source: GolfChaos.com

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Want to find out more about driving offence lawyers, then visit Mr Loophole's site on for detailed information on Motoring law for your needs.

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