By Eimear Dodd
A man narrowly avoided hitting a double buggy at a bus stop after causing €11,200 worth of damage to a garda car.
Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard that gardai boxed in a Toyota RAV4 car parked in a disabled space on the Oliver Plunkett Road in Monkstown on May 9, 2023, after noticing that it matched a description of a car taken from a home six days earlier.
As gardai started to get out of their cars, Conor Warburton (36) drove off at high speed by mounting the footpath and driving between a bus stop and the patrol car.
A couple and their young children in a double buggy were standing at the bus stop. When the car mounted the footpath, the man quickly pulled it out of the way.
Warburton hit the side of the patrol car, causing over €11,000 worth of damage. A garda was about to get out of the passenger side of the patrol car when Warburton hit it.
On Thursday, he was jailed for three years and disqualified from driving for ten years.
Warburton of Donomore Green, Tallaght, Dublin 24, pleaded guilty to charges including endangerment, dangerous driving, unauthorised use of a vehicle, use of fraudulent registration plates and no insurance or driving licence.
The court heard the car had false registration plates on it, and Warburton was not insured at the time.
The car drove off at speed and gardai followed it. They activated their blue lights, but Warburton didn’t stop.
Warburton continued at high speed, indicating right at a T-junction, then turning left. He entered a roundabout the wrong way at speed, then travelled in the direction of Deansgrange.
The court was told the pursuit lasted for around 30 seconds over approximately 800m. €11,200 worth of damage was caused to the garda car, but no details were available about any damage caused to the RAV4 car.
Gardai lost sight of the car. Warburton was identified from CCTV of a shop he entered before the incident took place.
He was arrested on June 15, 2023, and nothing of evidential value was obtained when he was interviewed.
Warburton has 66 previous convictions, including two for dangerous driving, nine for no insurance, theft and public order offences. He was also disqualified from driving at the time.
The investigating garda agreed with Sarah Jane O’Callaghan BL, defending, that addiction issues are at the root of her client’s offending.
Ms O’Callaghan said her client was “extremely fortunate” that no injuries were caused to the children or their parents.
She said he was very remorseful for his actions and is aware it could have been a “very sad day”, but for the actions of the father of the children.
Warburton started to take cannabis as a teenager, later developing an addiction. He completed drug treatment, relapsed and has now been clean for seven months. He has a history of psychosis, mental health difficulties and health issues.
Imposing sentence, Orla Crowe said Warburton engaged in “utterly reckless, dangerous behaviour” on the day in a busy area with lots of people and other vehicles around.
She noted that Warburton narrowly missed a garda getting out of a patrol car and two children in a buggy, adding that but for the quick thinking of the man, Warburton could have been facing more serious charges.
The judge noted Warburton’s previous convictions, adding that he has “been given every conceivable form of chance by the courts”.
She said the “utter disregard” shown for everyone was aggravating, as were Warburton’s previous convictions and that he was disqualified from driving at the time.
Having considered his personal circumstances and mitigation, Judge Crowe imposed a four-year sentence with the final 12 months suspended for two years to incentivise his rehabilitation.
Judge Crowe noted it was of value to Warburton and to “society at large if he is incentivised towards rehabilitation”.
She also disqualified Warburton from driving for ten years.