Intoxicated teenager crashed a vehicle

In the dock at Londonderry Magistrates’ Court was Nathan McNulty of Cornshell Fields.

The court heard that he was followed by police as he drove a van at speed through the Bogside, colliding with a wall at Lecky Road, and was eventually located in the vehicle as it lay on its side on the Braehead Road.

He had been spotted by police on March 12 this year driving a white van with a defective tail light. Checks revealed he had no insurance and police pursued the van to William Street, where a male got in. It was driven at speed towards Lecky Road, where it crashed into a wall.

The vehicle then reversed and continued towards Letterkenny Road and was observed on the Braehead Road with the wheels locked and swinging to the right. The transit was then located a short distance away on its side.

A breath test gave a reading of 65mg, almost twice the legal limit and a small amount of Class B drug was also found in the car.

Defence solicitor Seamus Quigley said his client was a 19-year-old who realised he had put himself in a difficult position and asked the court to consider a non-custodial sentence.

McNulty was banned from driving for two years and given a three-months jail sentence, suspended for two years for driving with excess alcohol and dangerous driving. He was also fined £450 for the remaining driving and drug related offences.