A woman driver who allowed young children to travel in the back of a commercial Ford Transit van with no restraint or place or proper seating, was convicted, fined, and disqualified from driving at Ballina District Court on Tuesday by Judge Mary Devins, who said this was a “fairly horrific incident” as “little people were left tossed around like skittles in the back of the van.”
Garda John Barrett outlined that on December 26 2008, while on foot patrol at 3pm on Emmett Street, Ballina, he stopped a van driven by Ellen Lawrence, Carrowcushlaun, Ballina, as he noticed that the driver was not wearing a seatbelt. After Lawrence was stopped, Garda Barrett observed four children, who he described as between the ages of two and five, standing in the rear of the van, unrestrained and with only what the garda described as a “homemade seat” present.
Defending solicitor Michael Bohan said that he was informed by his client that the seat was sufficient for three people, was fitted in the van by a garage, and that the ages of the children are 10, nine, and seven; however Garda Barrett said to the court that the children were younger than that.
Judge Devins said that “little people are too precious” to travel in such conditions. Lawrence, who had no previous convictions, was convicted and fined a total of €450 and disqualified from driving for six months.
