A disqualified driver was so drunk he has no recollection of his involvement in a garda pursuit, a court has heard.
Darragh Carroll (27) was spotted by gardaí speeding in Balbriggan, Co Dublin.
Officers activated the lights and sirens and indicated the driver to pull over but he refused to and continued to drive dangerously in the area.
Gardaí ran a check on the registration plate of the Renault Fluence and noted it had been stolen the previous evening.
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Carroll ran a number of red lights, including overtaking another vehicle stopped at the lights, drove through a number of stop signs, mounted a footpath and drove the wrong way down busy residential streets.
Garda Dean O’Donnell told Marc Murphy, prosecuting, how at one point Carroll swerved around a pedestrian who was crossing the road.
The chase came to an end when Carroll drove straight into a wooden pillar. The passenger was arrested immediately, but Carroll ran off and jumped over the wall of a nearby house. He was arrested by gardaí at the front of the property.
Carroll, of The Plaza, Shangan Road, Dublin 9, admitted stealing a Renault Fluence, endangerment, two charges of criminal damage and having no driving licence in Balbriggan on April 22nd, 2021.
Carroll had initially denied the charges, but pleaded guilty on the morning of his trial at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court.
A bench warrant was issued for his arrest when he later failed to show up for his sentence hearing. He has been on remand in custody since August 2024 after gardaí executed that warrant.
Gda O’Donnell said Carroll had been disqualified from driving for four years in October 2019 after he was convicted of having no insurance and dangerous driving.
He has 60 previous convictions, which include road traffic offences, criminal damage, drugs and assault causing harm. He was not on bail at the time of this offence.
Gda O’Donnell said the Renault Fluence was written off by the insurance company, but the insurer did not compensate the owner as it appeared he had dropped his car keys close to the vehicle after parking it.
Judge Sinéad Ní Chúlacháin set an overall headline sentence of seven-and-half years, which she reduced to three years after taking into account Carroll’s plea of guilty, his “unfortunate upbringing” and his remorse.
She sentenced Carroll to three years in prison for the endangerment offence, two years for the criminal damage and two years for stealing the car. The sentences are to run concurrently.
Judge Ní Chúlacháin suspended the final 18 months on condition Carroll remained under the supervision of the Probation Service. He was disqualified from driving for five years.
Aoife McNickle, defending, said Carroll was seriously intoxicated on the night.
She said he “drank entirely to excess” and cannot remember much of that evening.
Ms McNickle said her client accepted full responsibility for his actions and new he was “entirely in the wrong”.
She said Carroll had a difficult relationship with alcohol and drug misuse.
“He has poor coping mechanisms and poor decision making while using drugs or alcohol,” Ms McNickle said. He was engaging with rehabilitation in custody, the court heard.
