In the provincial penitenciary in Granada, which is situated in Albolote, there are 32 drivers doing time for traffic offences.

In fact, Granada is amongst the top twelve provinces for the number of such prisoners carrying out sentences, with Madrid, Málaga and  Sevilla leading the way.

A recent report by the Ministerio del Interior listed the main offences that put drivers in jail: driving having exhausted the points on a driving licence or simple not having a licence at all are the two main ones followed by reckless driving after having consumed alcohol or drugs.

First time offenders rarely end up in prison but there is a hardcore of repeat offenders who are the backbone of the prison population for driving offences, chief amongst which is driving under the influence.

According to 2019 figures, Granada has one prisoner for involuntary manslaughter, in other words, running down a pedestrian resulting in his or her death. The typical profile of somebody found guilty of this crime is a male Spaniard between 26 and 60, carrying out an average prison sentence of four years. As for repeat offenders, 61% of prisoners for driving offences have done time before for this reason.

(News: Granada, Andalucia)