Cork woman escaped death after vehicle landed on top of her car, court hears
The judge at Midleton District Court disqualified the defendant from driving for two years and fined him €1,000 with two months to pay.
A Cork woman narrowly escaped death when her regular commute home came to an abrupt halt after an out-of-control vehicle landed on top of her car, a court has heard.
Court presenter Inspector Michael Hogan told Midleton District Court that the incident happened on the evening of October 11, 2023, on the road between Midleton and Dungourney in Co Cork[/url[.
Defence solicitor, Joseph Cuddigan, said that the accused man in the case, Joseph O’Connor, aged 30, of The Lodge, Ballymartin, Dungourney, Co Cork, could not be present because he was working out of the country. Judge Colm Roberts said that the case would proceed without the accused who had known the hearing date well in advance.
Giving evidence, Tina Maguire told the court that she finished work in Midleton that evening at about 6.15pm and was driving her Toyota Yaris towards her home in Garryduff, a journey that normally took about 20 minutes.
Ms Maguire said that shortly after leaving Midleton she was driving along the road towards Dungounrey about a quarter of the way into the journey when a car came around the bend towards her. She said that when the car came into view it was “out of control” and was “veering from one side of the road to the other”.
Ms Maguire said “it all happened so fast” and she stopped her car, applied the brakes and “braced for impact”. The other car, an Alfa Romeo struck a tree on the opposite side of the road, flipped into the air and landed on the bonnet of Ms Maguire’s Yaris.
Ms Maguire said:
She said that the other car had come to rest on its side and the driver was trapped in the driver’s seat and was screaming. Ms Maguire said that she suffered bruising across her chest from the seatbelt and injured her back as a result which required her to attend physiotherapy and take time off work.
Garda John Tarrant said that when he arrived at the scene Joseph O’Connor was still trapped in the driver’s seat and had to be removed by the fire brigade. He said that the Alfa Romeo was on its side and the front passenger wheel was missing.
He said that part of an alloy wheel was stuck in the trunk of a nearby tree about five feet off the ground. He said that once Mr O’Connor had been removed to an ambulance he made the legally required request for a breath specimen but Mr O’Connor refused to provide one.
Garda Tarrant said that in his opinion Mr O'Connor was perfectly capable of providing a specimen and was conversing freely with himself and ambulance staff. He said that once Mr O’Connor was admitted to hospital the statutory limit of three hours within which a blood test must be carried out had expired.
Ms McGuire said that she “must have been blessed” that day to escape without serious injury. Judge Colm Roberts commended Ms Maguire for the way she had given her evidence. He said that she could have been killed in the accident and was very forgiving towards Mr O’Connor.
The court heard that Mr O’Connor had no previous convictions. For dangerous driving Mr O’Connor was disqualified from driving for two years and fined €500 with two months to pay. For refusing to give a breath sample he was fined €500 and given two months to pay.
Recognisance in the event of an appeal was fixed at €500 with €250 required in cash.
