Farrenkelly Man Pleads Guilty To Latest Drink Driving Charge

Patrick Connors leaving court… Pic: Darragh McCann

Farrenkelly man with multiple convictions for road traffic offences – including several for drink driving – has pleaded guilty at his latest court case.

Patrick Connors was originally charged with dangerous driving for crashing his car into a roundabout at Farrenkelly on St Patrick’s Day.

His solicitor, Dermot Hickey, put it to the court that his client was willing to admit to a charge of careless driving, a compromise that gardaí were initially reluctant to accept.

Outlined in a report by The Bray People’s Darragh McCann, Sergeant Mick Dee told the court that it was at 3.50pm on March 17th the 46-year-old accused crashed his car into the Farrenkelly roundabout, before fleeing the scene. It was 25 minutes later that he returned, when a breath sample was taken and Connors admitted that he had been drink driving.

Photographs handed into court showed Connors’ car heavily damaged, with a pole protruding through one of the tyres. Nonetheless the vehicle was, the court was told, not written off.

Counsel for the defence said that the defendant’s wife suffered from depression and that her husband’s current driving ban had caused her “significant stress”.

Judge Mary McAveety took the defendant’s early guilty plea into consideration, and “reluctantly” imposed a fine of €500.

“You are so lucky nobody was around to be injured as it was St Patrick’s Day.”