Dungannon man was pursued by police through Portadown 'in one of the worst cases of dangerous driving' a Craigavon judge said he has 'ever seen'
A man, who was pursued by police through Portadown in one of the worst cases of dangerous driving a judge said he had ever seen, has been given a jail sentence.
Liam Patrick Kevin Murray, aged 39, of Drumkee Villas, Dungannon, appeared in custody in the dock at Craigavon Magistrates Court.
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He pleaded guilty to a number of charges including failing to stop for police, dangerous driving, failing to provide specimen of breath for a preliminary breath test, no insurance, no driving licence and failing to provide specimen for evidential test.
A charge of possessing the Class A drug cocaine was contested and District Judge Michael Ranaghan dismissed it citing ‘numerous evidential difficulties’ including ‘continuity issues’.
The court heard that police received a report of a suspected drink driver at Farlock Road, Dungannon described as ‘being all over the road’ at 2.45pm on October 4 last year.
Despite police attempts, the vehicle was not located until 7.25pm when officers on mobile patrol at the M12 spotted the vehicle stopped on the hard shoulder with two men on board.
As police stopped, the car took off with a pursuit ensuing. The suspect car continued swerving between the two lanes into Portadown. The car exited onto Carn roundabout, failing to give way, causing a member of the public to ‘emergency brake’.
The car went round the roundabout into Seagoe Road where it overtook multiple times maintaining a position in the middle of the road at speeds in excess of 60mph in a 40mph zone.
The car then went onto Kernan Road and attempted to do what police believe was a handbrake turn outside a nursery school but failed.
The car then accelerated off at speeds in excess of 50mph in a 30mph zone “narrowly avoiding a collision with several members of the public”, a prosecutor revealed.
As the vehicle approached the roundabout at Kernan Road and Lurgan Road it went the wrong way around it onto Lurgan Road, again causing other drivers to brake.
The car began to accelerate to more than 50mph “where it has went head-on with another police vehicle” before moving into the correct lane.
It proceeded along that road breaching a red traffic light travelling on the wrong side of the road at 60mph in a 40mph zone. “Thankfully no members of the public were crossing the junction,” said the prosecutor.
The car travelled on along the Lurgan Road towards Bridge Street “making multiple overtakes” before colliding with an island, appearing to burst the front offside tyre.
It then drove left onto Carrickblacker Road where the car has stopped in the middle of the road and a male in a red top got out of the driver’s seat and ran off into Carrickblacker Ave. He was pursued by police into an alleyway where he was arrested.
The defendant appeared “hostile and agitated” and it “was clear he was probably intoxicated through slurred speech and a strong smell of intoxicating liquor and he was very unsteady on his feet”, the court heard.
Murray’s barrister, Mr Noel Dillon, said it is accepted this is “a bad case of dangerous driving”.
He pointed to the first entry in Murray’s record in 2003, a drug matter, when he was 18.
Mr Dillon said the situation was “complicated” due to one previous serious matter on page one of his record followed by the offence of affray noted on page two of his record and that given the earlier serious conviction he “was deemed to be a risk of serious harm to the public and given an indeterminate custodial sentence”.
The barrister revealed that as a result of these matters “his licence was revoked and he finds himself back in Maghaberry for this last number of months since the incident”.
Mr Dillon said his client had spent nine years in prison in relation to the affray before he was released “given the indeterminate custodial sentence”.
"He has now been recalled,” said Mr Dillon, adding that his relationship with his partner of 20 years had been maintained throughout that time and they have three children.
"However, he finds himself back in Maghaberry as a result of this particular incident,” said Mr Dillon.
"This is a man with a young family who has put his liberty at risk for God knows how long as a result of these matters,” he said.
District Judge Michael Ranaghan said: “It is among the worst set of driving that I have ever seen in relation to dangerous driving. It is very, very much towards the upper end.
"At one stage there was an attempted handbrake turn outside a nursery, putting police at considerable danger and indeed other road users.
"You are simply lucky you are not before the court for a much more serious offence. Dangerous driving causing death was a real possibility here but it is not what I am looking at,” said the district judge.
He sentenced Murray to six months in prison for the dangerous driving and banned him from driving for three years plus a £25 offender levy.
For failing to stop he was given a £200 fine with an immediate seven-day warrant.
For failing to provide a preliminary test he was given a concurrent driving disqualification of one year.
For no insurance he was sentenced to six months in jail to run concurrently with the previous sentence and banned from driving for one year.
For no driving licence he was given a 12-month driving ban, also concurrent.
For failing to provide the evidential specimen he was given a concurrent six months jail term.