Car fanatic jailed for leading gardaí on high-speed chase

A car fanatic has been jailed for two years for leading gardaí on a high-speed chase through a residential area in Dublin and putting a “terrifying” number of people at risk.

Mark Davis, who has over 200 previous convictions mostly relating to road offences, nearly collided with a Luas tram and clocked up speeds of 100km/h as he was pursued for 10 minutes through Tallaght.

Davis (27), of Kilmartin Drive, Tallaght, pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to two counts of dangerous driving in relation to the incident on March 27th, 2015. He is currently serving a prison sentence for a similar offence of endangerment, and the latest sentence will be consecutive to that term which ends next June.

Judge Melanie Greally said the incident was "terrifying in terms of how many people were placed at risk", including Luas passengers, children and other motorists."It was something of a miracle that no one was injured as a consequence of his driving."

Judge Greally said a fascination with cars and the development of a drug habit had been the main causes of Davis’s behaviour at the time. She imposed a four-year sentence and suspended the final two years. She ordered a one-year probation supervision for Davis, who was previously disqualified from driving for 20 years.

Red lights

Garda David Jennings told Fiona McGowan, prosecuting, that he was on patrol when he spotted Davis reversing at high speed out of a cul-de-sac in Tallaght shortly after 4pm. A pursuit began, and gardaí saw Davis frequently crossed on to the wrong side of the road and break several red lights.

Garda Jennings said he decided to end the pursuit after 10 minutes as it was too dangerous. “It was Friday evening and traffic was heavy.”

Davis was eventually arrested when he presented himself to a Garda station.

Sarah Jane O’Callaghan, defending, told the court that Davis “panicked” when he saw gardaí­ as he had no insurance, no driving licence and no NCT cert for the car.

She said Davis was an introvert who was “obsessed with cars” and had “placed himself under house arrest” after getting involved in a gang feud following a row related to an ex-girlfriend. “He got caught up in a gang and this placed him under extreme stress,” she said.