Carrickfergus van driver who failed to move out of way of police vehicle on emergency call in Cookstown said he had been 'daydreaming'
A van driver who said he was daydreaming when he failed to move out of the way of a police car on the Cookstown dual carriageway responding to an emergency call, Dungannon Magistrates Court has been told.
John Stuart Neil Pollock, aged 41, of Albany Drive, Carrickfergus, was fined £150 with a £15 offender’s levy and handed three penalty points on a charge of driving without due care and attention.
Imposing the penalties, District Judge Francis Rafferty remarked that it “must have been some daydream” when he didn't hear sirens or see flashing lights behind him for three-quarters of a mile.
Prosecuting counsel said the offence happened on November 16, 2024, at approximately 10.55am, on Moneymore Road, Cookstown.
He said police answering an emergency call activated flashing lights and sirens to get a van to pull into the second lane so that they could pass.
The lawyer said officers observed that the defendant was holding a cup of coffee and “blasted” the sirens to get his attention.
He said the police vehicle continued behind the van for three-quarters of a mile on the carriageway attempting to get his attention.
When he finally pulled over to the hard shoulder, Pollock told police that he was sorry and had been daydreaming.
A defence lawyer said the father-of-two worked as a delivery driiver and had been unable to hear the sirens because of the insulation in the van.
Pleading for leniency, the lawyer added that the defendant would be more careful in the future.