Cork van driver’s stress led to careless driving, court hears
Court heard accused was a dental technician who had just finished work when the incident occurred. File picture: Dan Linehan
A van driver who was charged with dangerous driving and careless driving was suffering from stress at the time of the incident, the district court has heard.
Sergeant Tom Mulcahy told Clonakilty District Court that a motorist was driving across the causeway between Clonakilty and Ardfield in West Cork at about 6pm on August 30, 2024. The court heard a black van suddenly appeared in his rearview mirror and drove up “very close” behind him.
The van overtook, heading in the direction of Ardfield, but the motorist came up behind it a short distance further on where it was now driving close behind a slow moving Volkswagen T-Roc car. As the convoy of three vehicles passed the Mountain House pub, the van overtook the T-Roc on a narrow stretch of road, just missing a collision with the ditch.
The motorist said the T-Roc beeped at the van and the van then braked suddenly in the middle of the road, stopping for five seconds, without putting on any indicators and the driver did not get out. The van then drove off.
The court was told the female driver of the T-Roc pulled over nearby and was “in shock” at what had happened. The driver of the van was identified as 57-year-old Sean Casey, of Larkin Street, Clonakilty. The court was told Casey had no previous convictions.
Defence solicitor Éamonn Fleming said Casey was a dental technician who had just finished work when the incident occurred. He said his client’s driving left “an awful lot to be desired” and though it was not an excuse, by explanation he was suffering from considerable stress at the time.
Mr Fleming said Casey was “not coping well in his life at the time” and was very contrite and that his client’s documents were all in order.
He asked Judge Joanne Carroll to consider reducing the charge of dangerous driving to the lesser charge of careless driving given Casey’s clean record.
Judge Carroll agreed to reduce the charge and said she accepted Casey was going through a stressful period at the time. She said it was clearly “an error of driving”, and convicted Casey on two counts of careless driving, fining him €200 on each, with three months to pay the fines.
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