Man jailed for reversing his car into neighbour

By Eimear Dodd

A Dublin man has been jailed after he admitted reversing his car into a neighbour, causing serious injury to his leg.

Stephen Cunningham (55) of Cushlawn Park, Tallaght, pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to dangerous driving causing serious bodily harm to Paul Sutton on October 25, 2022.

Detective Garda Shane Whelan told David Perry BL, prosecuting today that the defendant and the victim have known each other for many years.

On the day in question, Mr Sutton, then 55, was walking and was about to cross the entrance of Cushlawn Park housing estate.

He started to cross the road, then saw Cunningham drive into the estate. Cunningham’s wife and son were also in the car.

The victim stepped back onto the footpath and saw Cunningham with his hands on the steering wheel, looking at him and laughing. Cunningham stopped the car, and Mr Sutton crossed the road behind.

While crossing the road, Mr Sutton tapped the car’s roof, then shouted some expletives. He continued walking, then stepped onto the footpath.

Cunningham then reversed his car onto the footpath and into Mr Sutton, who fell to the ground.

The victim told gardai he did not expect Cunningham to come towards him as he was walking away. He said he saw Cunningham driving in the direction of his home while he was lying on the ground.

A witness said they saw Cunningham swerve onto the footpath to hit Mr Sutton with the rear of his car and reverse over his legs, all in one movement, before driving away.

Det Gda Whelan said there is no evidence that Cunningham was driving at high speed at the time.

He said he arrived on the scene shortly afterwards and saw Mr Sutton on the ground. Mr Sutton told him he was in pain and could not move his right leg. The garda said he could not see much blood, but there was bruising.

He told gardai about Cunningham and they called to his house. Cunningham opened the door and said he was expecting gardai to call. Det Gda Whelan said it is his view that Cunningham was waiting for gardai to knock on his door.

Cunningham was arrested, and after caution, he told gardai that Mr Sutton had “banged on the car”. He said he reversed to “give him a nudge”, then Mr Sutton “jumped to the ground” and he would be “surprised if he has a bruise”.

During interview, Cunningham admitted driving the car but gave an account in which he said Mr Sutton started to walk in the middle of the road after seeing him.

He claimed Mr Sutton hit the bonnet of the car on the front passenger side, and he reversed to say, “What the f**k are you doing?”.

Det Gda Whelan told the court that Cunningham maintained during interview that he “barely touched” Mr Sutton, who he said “jumped to the ground”. Cunningham seemed to believe Mr Sutton was not injured and said he would have stopped if he was.

Mr Sutton was taken to Tallaght Hospital, where he spent a week, before being transferred for treatment to another facility. He required two surgeries on his knee and spent six weeks in total in hospital.

A medical report was handed to the court, which indicated Mr Sutton continues to suffer mobility issues. Photos taken by Mr Sutton’s family of his injuries were also shown to the court.

In a victim impact statement read by Mr Perry, the victim said his knee was shattered in four places, and he is “constantly stuck in the house”. He noted the medical treatment he has undergone, including seven months in a leg brace.

He said he gets concerned when out walking if a car goes past and wonders if it might be Cunningham again. He said he gets “visions” of Cunningham looking at him from the car, and his sleep has been affected. He also spoke of his concern as they both live in the same estate.

Mr Sutton said he is no longer able to go mountain walking and will never run again.

Cunningham has two minor convictions dating back to the 1990s.

Det Gda Whelan agreed with Oisin Clarke BL, defending, that his client did not flee the scene in the usual sense, but was waiting at his home nearby for gardai.

It was also accepted that Cunningham handed over the car keys, and there is no evidence or allegation about the use of drugs or drink at the time of the incident. He also confirmed Cunningham has not come to garda attention since and there have been no further incidents.

Mr Clarke said his client accepts he caused the injuries to Mr Sutton but believed at the time any injury sustained was “not as serious as they turned out to be”.

He suggested this incident “appears to have come out of nowhere” and that there seems to have been a “level of bad feeling between the parties”.

He noted Cunningham was not driving at speed and was a short distance from Mr Sutton when he started reversing. However, he said this was a serious offence regardless of the speed or distance travelled. Hitting someone with a car always carries a risk of causing serious injury.

Defence counsel said Cunningham is married and has two sons, one of whom he cares for. His wife does not drive, and Cunningham uses the car to bring their son to the services he engages with.

Cunningham worked for 15 years as an industrial cleaner and has significant health issues, but no medical report was provided.  A letter of apology and several testimonials were handed to the court.

Mr Clarke asked the court to consider this a “small island of madness” in a life that is otherwise a “sea of calm”. He suggested his client is unlikely to re-offend, and the imposition of an immediate custodial sentence will have a significant impact on Cunningham’s family.

Judge Pauline Codd said there is an “obvious risk of serious injury by driving in that manner”, whether or not the intention is “to scare or give a bump”.

She said it was a “very deliberate act to reverse the car” and while Cunningham may not have intended to cause that level of harm, his action was “highly reckless” and has caused “considerable suffering” to the victim.

The judge said she accepted that Cunningham did not envision causing that level of injury, and this was a “moment of madness” that was “out of character”.

But, she noted that a car should not be used to “injure or frighten anyone” and Mr Sutton was “not in a position to defend himself”.

She said Cunningham’s actions were “childish and irresponsible”.

Setting a headline sentence of six years, she said she took into account the mitigating factors, including the early guilty plea and his previous good character.

Judge Codd noted that the custodial sentence will unfortunately impact Cunningham’s family, adding that this was something he should have “thought about before deciding to reverse his car” into Mr Sutton.

She imposed a sentence of three and a half years, with the final 12 months suspended on strict conditions. Judge Codd also disqualified Cunningham from driving for ten years.

When Mr Clarke noted that Cunningham’s wife does not drive, Judge Codd suggested that she “can learn to drive”.

“People can’t go out and use a car as a weapon,” she said.