Ex-TD Colm Keaveney admits cocaine driving amid bans, addiction and family heartbreak
Former Galway TD Colm Keaveney has admitted driving under the influence of cocaine, capping a turbulent chapter in his life marked by addiction, repeated driving offences, and devastating personal loss.
The 54-year-old, once regarded as a rising star in Irish politics, appeared before Tuam District Court on Tuesday after his case was adjourned more than ten times. He pleaded guilty to dangerous driving and two counts of driving without insurance.
The charges arose from an incident on 12 June 2023, when Keaveney was stopped at a routine Garda checkpoint in Galway. Sergeant Christy Browne told the court that the former TD failed a roadside drug test. A subsequent blood analysis confirmed the presence of cocaine.
Just over a year later, in July 2024, Keaveney was stopped twice more, both times for failing to display a valid insurance disc. His solicitor, Gearóid Geraghty, told the court that his client had “fallen into addiction” and was living on disability allowance.
Embed from Getty ImagesThe court also heard that Keaveney already had two previous convictions, including one from July 2023, when he was fined €250 and banned from driving for four years. That case followed a late-night collision in Co Roscommon, where Keaveney refused to provide a blood or urine sample.
Appearing before Carrick-on-Shannon District Court, he admitted failing to stop at the scene of an accident and refusing to provide the required sample under the Road Traffic Act. He was handed a four-year driving ban at the time.
The latest case has underscored the former politician’s sharp descent from power and respectability. Keaveney, who once chaired the Labour Party, built his career steadily from the grassroots. His first bid for the Dáil came in 1997 under the Labour banner. He was elected to Tuam Town Council in 1999 and then to Galway County Council in 2004.
In 2011, he secured a seat in the Dáil for Galway East, winning national attention and later being appointed Labour Party chair in 2012. But his political trajectory faltered the following year when he resigned from Labour after clashing with the leadership. He served briefly as an Independent before joining Fianna Fáil later in 2013.
Keaveney later returned to local politics as a Galway county councillor, though he did not seek re-election in 2024. His withdrawal from public life coincided with growing personal and legal troubles.
Outside politics, Keaveney’s life has been touched by tragedy. Both of his parents have passed away, while his brother, Kieran, died in 2014 after a long illness. Friends say these losses, combined with the pressures of political and personal life, weighed heavily on him.
Tuesday’s court appearance brought a sense of finality after months of delays. The once high-profile TD, described as having endured a “significant fall from grace,” now faces years away from the driver’s seat and the shadow of his political past.
Speaking in court, his solicitor sought leniency, highlighting Keaveney’s struggles with addiction and his reliance on state support. But the sequence of offences, compounded by repeated bans and breaches, painted a grim picture of a man battling demons both personal and legal.
From Leinster House to the district court dock, Colm Keaveney’s story reflects a dramatic collapse of a once-promising career. What began as a determined rise through the ranks of Irish politics has ended with guilty pleas, driving bans, and headlines about cocaine abuse. For many, his trajectory stands as a cautionary tale of how quickly power and promise can unravel.