A motorist crashed into another vehicle while driving on the wrong side of the road.
Thomas Sweeney, of 25 Lana Aoibhinn, Longford, failed to appear at Castlebar District Court to answer a charge of careless driving.
Gda Dermot O’Connor said he received a report of a two-car collision at Dromada, Killasser, Swinford, at 8.40pm on September 1, 2020. When he arrived, he observed damage to the front of both vehicles.
Sweeney had been attempting a left-hand turn on a bad bend when his Ford Fiesta collided with a jeep driven by local woman Vanessa Crawford who had been preparing to take a right-hand turn on the same corner.
Sweeney had two passengers in his car while Ms Crawford was travelling with her three children.
A roadside drug and alcohol test was carried out on both drivers and returned negative results.
Gda O’Connor said Sweeney’s Fiesta had left a 29-metre skid mark on the road, but there were no skid marks from Ms Crawford’s vehicle.
“It appeared as though she had taken steps to avoid Mr Sweeney’s car,” he said, adding that Sweeney was on the wrong side of the road when he came around the bend seconds before the collision.
Gda O’Connor took a statement from Ms Crawford but Sweeney declined to make a statement.
“She said she had been travelling that road for 20 years and knew that bad bend very well. She had come to a complete stop on that corner when she observed the other vehicle coming towards her out of control, skidding sideways and eventually coming to a stop on impact with her jeep.”
Gda O’Connor said Ms Crawford suffered a severe concussion and has ongoing pain in her neck and back. Sweeney’s daughter, a front-seat passenger, suffered minor cuts to her face, but the three children in Ms Crawford’s car escaped uninjured, as did the defendant and his other passenger.
Sweeney has nine previous convictions.
Judge Marie Keane said there was ample evidence to show Sweeney drove in a careless manner. She imposed a fine of €500.
