Wheel was ripped from car after speeding motorist collided with central reservation
A motorist with prescription drugs in his system sped along a town centre road and crashed into a central reservation causing a wheel to be ripped from a car.
Henry Harry McLarnon (46), of Glendun Drive in Ballymena, crashed around 4.45pm on Saturday January 6 in the Queen Street area of the town.
He pleaded guilty to dangerous driving; driving whilst unfit; failing to notify the road authorities of his medical situation and also failing to provide the information to an insurance company.
A prosecutor told Ballymena Magistrates Court when police attended they found a Toyota Aygo with a front wheel missing. The defendant was in the driver's seat. Another vehicle was damaged.
Officers had to assist the defendant out of the car - each taking an arm to hold him up. He had slurred and "incoherent speech". A preliminary breath test was zero but there were prescription drugs in his system.
The court heard "CCTV" showed the car being driven at speed along Queen Street and colliding with a "central reservation".
The prosecutor said the defendant's GP had told him not to drive due to medical conditions but the defendant had not disclosed them to the Driver & Vehicle Agency nor his insurance company.
A defence barrister said the defendant's driving licence has now been revoked. He said the defendant had been driving his uncle's car on the day in question.
The lawyer said the defendant is a "recluse" who rarely goes out but on January 6 he had driven to "get a loaf of bread for the Sunday morning breakfast".
The barrister said the defendant was thankful that "by the Grace of God" no one was injured because of his driving and his client has not driven since.
The defendant was banned from driving for a year and fined £400.