A momentary lapse of concentration caused a motorist to veer across a continuous white line.
‘If there hadn’t been an oncoming car, he would have corrected and crossed back into his lane,’ solicitor Colette McCarthy stated in defence of her client, Shane Darragh Carey (43) of Faha West, Adrigole, at Bantry District Court last Thursday.
As it turned out, Sgt Tom Mulcahy outlined how the accused struck an oncoming car on the driver’s side, just 400m from his home at Faha West on September 24th 2024.
The sergeant said the accused’s vehicle ended up in a ditch, while the airbags in the oncoming car deployed.
There was also damage to the driver’s side of the oncoming car, which meant he had to exit from the passenger’s side.
Sgt Mulcahy said both drivers were breath tested at the scene and neither of them showed any signs of having consumed alcohol.
In mitigation, Ms McCarthy said her client ‘didn’t try and find an excuse for what happened, and could only conclude that it was a momentary lapse of concentration.’
She also told Judge Joanne Carroll that her client has no previous convictions.
Judge Carroll held that ‘this was a very significant driving error’ and she fined the accused €250 for careless driving.
(Funded under the Local Courts Reporting Scheme.)
