Finglas man jailed for driving towards group of pedestrians

By Eimear Dodd

A disqualified driver who drove towards a group of men and injured one has been jailed for three and a half years. 

Darren Mulholland (39) pleaded guilty to endangerment and driving without insurance at School Road, Finglas, on November 18, 2019.

Mulholland of Glenhill Grove, Finglas, Dublin 11, has 32 previous convictions and was disqualified from driving for 15 years at the time of this incident.

Detective Sergeant Peter Nestor told Diana Stuart, BL, prosecuting, that a group of six men were standing near a green area when a Ford Focus, driven by Mulholland, drove past.

The car returned to the area, and the passenger started to shout at the men, who were all of Indian and Pakistani origin.

The car mounted the footpath as if it was about to reverse, then it travelled forward, and one of the men was struck and carried on the bonnet for between five to ten meters.

The injured party was afraid following the incident and in pain. He was taken to hospital and sustained soft tissue injuries.

Mulholland drove the car across the green and left the scene.

Dashcam footage of the incident was played to the court.

A victim impact statement was provided to the court but not read aloud. Sgt Nestor said the victim attributes a number of health issues he has suffered since to this incident.

He also said the victim believes that the men in the car were intoxicated at the time and that their actions were motivated by “their colour or race”.

The car was identified by CCTV. Mulholland was later arrested, but nothing of evidential value was obtained during the interview.

Sgt Nestor agreed with Derek Cooney BL, defending, that the passenger, not his client, was shouting at the men.

It was further accepted that Mulholland was intoxicated at the time, and CCTV shows Mulholland travelling by taxi to an off-licence shortly after this incident.

Mr Cooney said his client’s behaviour was “appalling” on the day in question and “no explanation can be put forward” for his actions.

He said his client had “no business getting caught up in this” and had “no reason to drive on the footpath or leave the scene”.

Mulholland has addiction issues and developed auditory hallucinations and psychosis due to his use of cocaine. He has made attempts to deal with his addiction and mental health issues.

Mr Cooney said his client is from a “hard-working, well-respected family”. Mulholland’s parents and sister were in court to support him. Documents including a letter from his mother were handed to the court. Mulholland has one young child.

Counsel asked the court to consider the passage of time since this incident occurred. He asked for as much leniency as possible for his client.

Judge Martin Nolan said that Mulholland decided to drive forward on the footpath “for reasons only known to this defendant”.

He noted that driving a car is “always potentially dangerous” but said the court accepted that Mulholland started the car from a standing stop. However, the judge noted this was a “serious endangerment” which could have been “very dangerous” and resulted in serious injuries.

Judge Nolan said Mulholland had “intentionally” driven towards the men either to “frighten them or hurt them, we don’t know”.

He said the court had to infer that there must have been “some racial motivation to this behaviour,” which is an aggravating factor, along with the fact that Mulholland was disqualified from driving at the time.

Judge Nolan said the court accepts Mulholland was intoxicated at the time, but this was “not an excuse” and noted his history of “bad driving”.

He noted the mitigation includes the guilty plea and Mulholland’s personal circumstances.

Judge Nolan imposed a three-and-a-half-year prison sentence and disqualified Mulholland from driving for six years.