Jail sentence for Sligo driver who reversed into garda patrol car
A DRIVER with Sligo and Dublin addresses was imprisoned for four and a half years for reversing into a garda patrol car, causing injuries to two gardaí.
Paul Darcy (26) pleaded guilty to endangerment, dangerous driving and criminal damage on September 7, 2018 at Stockhole Lane, Santry.
Darcy with addresses at Calry Court, Stephen Street, Co Sligo and St John’s Lane West, Thomas Street, Dublin, also pleaded guilty to three counts of burglary on September 2, 2018, in various locations in the Glasnevin area. He also pleaded guilty to the unauthorised taking of a car from a housing estate in Palmerstown on the night of October 11, 2018 and making off without paying for fuel at Applegreen Service Station, Palmerstown on October 13, 2018.
Darcy had been on bail in relation to three burglary charges at the time of this incident.
Keith Spencer BL, defending, said Darcy is a father of two young children and had left Dublin to live in Co Sligo. His client is from a large family and had been under bad influence of a family member at the time of the offence. Mr Spencer asked Judge Nolan to consider an adjournment to allow Darcy to spend time with his mother, who is in extremely poor health. He also applied for an adjournment to allow Darcy to make a gesture of compensation for the damage caused to the patrol car.
Refusing both applications, Judge Nolan acknowledged the expressions of remorse, and the positive steps Darcy has taken but said these were serious crimes.
He said Darcy had intentionally reversed a vehicle into an occupied car
A Garda patrol car.
and this “reflects badly” on him. He imposed a two-year sentence on the first burglary count, a four-year sentence in relation to the endangerment count to run consecutively, and 18 months for the unauthorised taking of the vehicle to run concurrently, with all other counts taken into consideration.
Judge Nolan imposed a six-year sentence in total with the final 18 months suspended on strict conditions, taking the mitigation into account. He also disqualified Darcy from driving for six years.