A judge from the Odesa region was dismissed for systematically dismissing drunk driving cases

The High Council of Justice has decided to dismiss Oleg Ivinsky, a judge of the Podil City and District Court in Odesa Oblast . The reason is his systematic dismissal of drunk driving cases on the grounds of “minor significance.”

According to the High Council of Justice, the decision was made based on a submission from the Second Disciplinary Chamber of the High Council of Justice, which brought disciplinary charges against the judge.

The grounds for the decision were the commission of a serious disciplinary offense and gross, systematic neglect of duties—as provided for in paragraph 3 of part six of Article 126 of the Constitution of Ukraine.

The High Council of Justice received two complaints against the judge—one from the Patrol Police Department in March 2024 and another from citizen T.V. Chizhik in June 2025.

The investigation established that during 2024–2025, Ivinsky regularly dismissed cases involving driving under the influence on the grounds of “minor significance,” limiting himself to a verbal reprimand. At the same time, the penalty under this article of the Code of Administrative Offenses is mandatory and provides for a fine along with a one-year suspension of driving privileges.

The Disciplinary Chamber also found that the judge applied the “minor offense” provision despite a direct prohibition on using it specifically in cases involving drunk driving.

Furthermore, he issued several versions of rulings on identical cases with contradictory content—one imposed a penalty, while another dismissed the very same case.

The rulings also contained contradictory details: the “lenient” versions stated that the offender had admitted guilt and expressed remorse, while the “harsh” versions indicated that he had not appeared in court at all.

Of the 25 cases reviewed, only two were confirmed to involve military personnel. The High Council of Justice deemed the judge’s arguments regarding the “state’s need for drivers” during martial law to be unfounded.

The Disciplinary Chamber characterized the judge’s actions as a deliberate disregard for the law and a systematic distortion of the factual circumstances of the cases, which, in its view, indicates a loss of the ability to administer justice.

Intent reported that O , Ivinsky appealed the decision of the Second Disciplinary Chamber of the High Council of Justice dated April 8, 2026. The High Council of Justice reviewed the appeal but upheld the previous decision.

As a result, the High Council of Justice upheld the motion and ruled to remove Oleg Ivinsky from his position as a judge of the Podil City and District Court of Odesa Oblast.

Intent analyzed Judge Oleg Ivinsky’s annual declaration and found that he had declared assets worth over 1.7 million hryvnias for 2025.

According to the document, the judge owns a 64.5 m² residential house in Podilsk and a plot of land measuring over 5,000 m² in the village of Pasat, Balt Community.

Ivinsky owns three cars: a 1969 GAZ 53-A, a 2015 Mitsubishi Outlander, and a 2016 Volvo XC60. The judge also declared $8,000 in cash.

His income for the reporting period totaled over 1.6 million hryvnias—comprising his court salary and pension. The judge did not list any family members in his declaration.

Ірина Глухова