Prawo Jazdy (alleged criminal)

"Prawo Jazdy" was a supposed Polish national who was listed by the Garda Síochána, the national police service of the Republic of Ireland, in a police criminal database as having committed more than 50 traffic violations in Ireland. A 2007 memorandum stated that an investigation revealed prawo jazdy (pronounced [ˈpra.vɔ ˈjaz.dɨ]) to be Polish for 'driving licence', with the error arising due to officers mistaking the phrase, printed on Polish driving licences, to be a personal name while issuing traffic tickets.

Sample 2004–2013 Polish driving licence, with the phrase prawo jazdy printed at the top right

Criminal database listing

"Prawo Jazdy" was an alleged Polish criminal supposedly active in the Republic of Ireland. The name was listed on PULSE, a computer system used by the Gardaí, with at least 50 traffic violations, including speeding and parking violations, recorded across the country, but there were suspicious aspects such as each incident being associated with a different address. "Prawo Jazdy" was also listed as a name on the Fixed Charge Processing System (FCPS). An investigation was launched into whom the Gardaí considered to be Ireland's worst traffic violator.[1][2][3]

Memorandum

An internal Garda memorandum in June 2007 revealed that, upon consultation with an online Polish–English bilingual dictionary, prawo jazdy was not a personal name, but instead the Polish term for 'driving licence', misidentified by Garda officers as the traffic violator's name due to the phrase being printed at the top right-hand corner of Polish driving licences (with the licensee's name and personal details printed beneath in a smaller font size). The error became public knowledge in February 2009.[4][5][6][7]

Aftermath

The Gardaí received the satirical Ig Nobel Prize in literature in 2009 for the mistake, but did not attend the award ceremony. The prize was accepted by Karolina Lewestam, a Polish national who had received a traffic violation in Ireland.[8][9]

The situation was a source of embarrassment for the Gardaí. It generated discussion on issues such as cultural ignorance or institutional racism within the Gardaí as a result of changing ethnic demographics in Ireland due to immigration from other European Union member states.[10]

In 2013, a common format for driving licences was implemented for all newly issued documents across the European Economic Area (EEA), of which both Ireland and Poland are part.

See also

References
  1. "The mystery of Ireland's worst driver". BBC News. 19 February 2009.
  2. "Prawo Jazdy: Mystery of Ireland's worst driver is solved". Belfast Telegraph. 20 February 2009.
  3. "Prawo Jazdy: Identity of Ireland's most notorious driver uncovered". The Daily Telegraph. 20 February 2009. Archived from the original on 5 May 2013.
  4. Maccormaic, Ruadhan (19 February 2009). "Dictionary helps crack case of notorious Polish serial offender". The Irish Times.
  5. Ni Bhraonain, Eimear (19 February 2009). "Rogue driver Prawo is lost in translation". Irish Independent.
  6. Sharrock, David (19 February 2009). "Prawo Jazdy: mystery motorist who bamboozled Irish traffic police". The Times.
  7. "Will the real "Prawo Jazdy" please stand up". Reuters. 19 February 2009.
  8. "Police in Ig Nobel Pole position". BBC News. 5 October 2009.
  9. Maccormaic, Ruadhan (3 October 2009). "Phantom Pole haunts Garda at alternative Nobel awards". The Irish Times.
  10. O'Brien-Olinger, Sam (26 January 2016). Police, Race and Culture in the 'new Ireland': An Ethnography. Springer Publishing. p. 13. doi:10.1057/9781137490452. ISBN 978-1-137-49045-2.
  • The dictionary definition of prawo jazdy at Wiktionary
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