A Claremorris man was given a one-year driving ban and fined €500 in Claremorris District Court for a careless driving conviction after he failed to pay a fixed charge penalty notice that was issued to him.
The court was that on January 15 2010, Garda Christina Donagher was driving in the patrol car towards Castlebar from Claremorris.
She told the court that a vehicle being driven by James Laurance Higgins of Curraghdooey, Claremorris, crossed over to her side of the road and forced her to break hard to avoid a collision.
She went on to say that she turned around the patrol car and followed Higgins into Claremorris where she stopped him at Dalton Street and issued him a fixed charge penalty notice. Higgins told the court that he never received the fine in the post, yet when asked by Judge Devins was his address the same as the one he received the summons to appear in court was, he confirmed it was.
Higgins also told the court that ‘She didn’t have to brake” referring to Garda Donagher’s evidence. Judge Mary Devins convicted and fined Higgins €300 and disqualified him from driving for a year.
