Sea Pollution (Hazardous Substances) (Compensation) Act 2005

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Detention of ships.

24.—(1) Where an inspector, in exercise of the powers conferred on him or her by this Act, detains a ship and the persons on board the ship at a port or other place in the State, an inspector who suspects that an offence under section 15 or 23 has been committed in relation to the ship shall (unless he or she is proceeding under subsection (2)), as soon as may be, apply to a judge of the District Court for an order authorising the continued detention of the ship and those persons, and the said judge may grant an order authorising such detention for a period of 48 hours if he or she is satisfied that the applicant inspector has such a suspicion as aforementioned.

(2) Where an inspector, in exercise of the powers conferred on him or her by this Act, detains a ship and the persons on board the ship at a port or other place in the State, an inspector shall, as soon as may be, bring the master of the ship and any other persons on board the ship, against whom proceedings for an offence under section 15 or 23 (6) have been or are about to be instituted, before a judge of the District Court and thereupon the said judge shall, if he or she is satisfied that such proceedings have been or are about to be instituted against the master and those other persons or any one or more of them, by order directed to an inspector, require such inspector to detain at a specified place in the State the ship and each person (including the master) aforesaid in respect of whom he or she is so satisfied, until such proceedings have been adjudicated upon by a court in exercise of its criminal jurisdiction, and when such proceedings are so adjudicated upon the judge of the court concerned may, by order, direct an inspector to further detain the ship at a specified place in the State pending the determination of any appeal from the adjudication concerned or the determination of any other proceedings connected with such adjudication or appeal.

(3) Where an inspector, pursuant to an order under subsection (1), continues to detain a ship and the persons on board the ship at a port or other place in the State, an inspector may bring the master and any other persons on board the ship, against whom proceedings for an offence under section 15 or 23 (6) have been or are about to be instituted, before a judge of the District Court and such judge shall—

(a) before the expiration of the period of 48 hours to which the said order applies, and

(b) if he or she is satisfied that such proceedings have been or are about to be instituted against the master and those other persons or any one or more of them,

by order directed to an inspector, require such inspector to detain at a specified place in the State the ship and each person (including the master) aforesaid in respect of whom he or she is so satisfied until such proceedings have been adjudicated upon by a court in exercise of its criminal jurisdiction, and when such proceedings are so adjudicated upon the judge of the court concerned may, by order, direct an inspector to further detain the ship at a specified place in the State pending the determination of any appeal from the adjudication concerned or the determination of any other proceedings connected with such adjudication or appeal.

(4) Where an order is made under subsection (2) or (3), a judge of the District Court or, as may be appropriate, the judge of the court adjudicating upon proceedings referred to in those subsections or that has adjudicated upon such proceedings, may by order direct an inspector to release the ship to which the order applies, subject to the giving of security, by or on behalf of the defendant, that in the opinion of the judge concerned would be adequate to provide for the payment of—

(a) (i) in circumstances where a court has not yet adjudicated upon such proceedings, the maximum fine for which the defendant would be liable if guilty of the offence to which the proceedings relate, or

(ii) in circumstances where the defendant has been convicted in such proceedings, any fine imposed by the court concerned,

and

(b) the estimated amount of the costs (if any) of any trials, appeals or other proceedings in relation to such an offence for which the defendant would be liable if convicted thereof or would be liable, if on appeal from a conviction for such offence or on the conclusion of any other proceedings connected with such conviction, the conviction were affirmed.

(5) Subsection (3) is in addition to and not in substitution for any other power of a court to require the entering into of a bond or recognisance by the defendant in respect of any trials, appeals or other proceedings to which the offence concerned relates.

(6) Where an order is made under this section for the detention or release of a ship, the ship shall be detained or released, as the case may be, in accordance with the terms of the order.