Disqualified from driving for four years and fined €200
A FATHER-of-three drove while over the alcohol limit because his friend had a heart condition and did not want to drive at the time, a court heard.
Dean Horan was also uninsured to drive when he “indulged” his friend by getting behind the wheel on the night.
Blanchardstown District Court
Judge David McHugh disqualified him from driving for four years and fined him €200 when he appeared in Blanchardstown District Court.
Horan, aged 34 with an address at North Circular Road, pleaded guilty to drink driving and driving without insurance at Thomas Omer Way, Dublin 22 on September 15, 2020.
Garda Seamus Gannon told the court he was operating a checkpoint at 9.15pm when he stopped the accused driving a Citroen Berlingo.
Horan failed the roadside breath test and was brought to Ballyfermot Garda Station, where he tested over the alcohol limit.
The accused had 60 prior convictions, 28 of which were road traffic-related, the court heard.
However, he had no previous convictions for drink driving and the last offence was a number of years ago. The accused was fully co-operative with the gardai.
There was no excuse for drink driving, but Horan’s explanation was that his friend had a heart condition and did not want to drive. Horan “indulged” his friend and drove in what was a “silly mistake,” his lawyer said.
The accused had not touched a drop of alcohol since and was working loading packages onto lorries for a delivery firm. Judge McHugh noted the gap between Horan’s previous convictions and the “difficulty he put himself in” last September. He said the accused “fell off some type of wagon or other”.
He imposed a four-year ban for the no insurance charge and a concurrent one-year disqualification for drink driving.
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