Carn man drove his van onto wrong side of road, forcing oncoming vehicle to stop

A young Carndonagh man who drove his van into the path of an oncoming vehicle, forcing it to come to a sudden halt on the roadway, has avoided a driving ban in court.

Louis Merritt, of Apartment 8, Station House, Bridge Street, Carndonagh, pleaded guilty to two charges of dangerous driving, which would have carried a mandatory disqualification of at least two years.

However, after hearing the facts of the case at Carndonagh District Court, Judge Emile Daly agreed to a defence request and reduced the charges to careless driving instead.

Solicitor Frank Dorrian said Mr Merritt had “misfired” and driven onto the wrong side of the road by mistake, rather than with any malicious intent.

Sergeant Conor Mulkerns presented the State’s evidence against the 23-year-old agricultural contractor.

He told the court how gardai were on routine patrol in Carndonagh town during the early hours of July 6, 2022, when they witnessed the incident.

At 12.30am, Garda Anne McGreal observed a 2013-registered black Citroen Berlingo van being driven erratically.

The van approached the Malin Road roundabout and failed to indicate left. A very short distance later, it proceeded to make an erratic manoeuvre onto the other side of the road, where there seemed to be an attempt to block an oncoming vehicle, which had been approaching.

Garda McGreal spoke to the driver, who gave his name as Louis Merritt. He was cautioned in relation to his driving, and he admitted the offence, telling gardai he was sorry and didn’t know why he did it.

Sgt Mulkerns further told the court that Mr Merritt has three previous convictions, including a previous charge of dangerous driving, which was reduced to careless driving.

In defence of his client, Mr Dorrian said it was a “misread” rather than anything deliberate.

“He actually misfired slightly. This vehicle was coming towards him, and he thought it was on his side of the road, so he went onto the right-hand side of the road to avoid it.”

“He came off the roundabout and saw this vehicle approaching. He got the incorrect impression that the other vehicle had come onto his side of the road – and he moved onto the other side to avoid it. It was not an aggressive move to block the other driver.”

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Mr Dorrian added: “Both vehicles then stopped, and the guards came on the scene. It was a misunderstanding. It’s as unremarkable as that; there’s no collision, no one injured, and he has dealt with it since.”

The veteran Buncrana solicitor further told the court that his client makes his living driving tractors as an agricultural contractor, and Mr Dorrian conceded that he “should have known better” on the night in question.

Judge Daly asked Sgt Mulkerns if the State consented to the charges being reduced, and he replied: “We do, judge.”

She then agreed to a reduction to careless driving, imposing a fine of €300, with six months to pay.

The judge said she would apply her discretion not to disqualify Mr Merritt from driving on this occasion, given the circumstances outlined to her.