An IT worker serving a driving ban “took a chance” and drove a car to the shops five minutes away because his partner was not in the house at the time to drive him, a court heard.
Darren Flynn (52) was serving a six-year driving ban at the time, and immediately admitted his mistake when he was stopped by gardaí.
Judge Shalom Binchy fined Flynn €1,400 and put him off the road for three years.
The defendant, of Estuary Road, Seabury, Malahide, north Co Dublin, pleaded guilty to uninsured and unlicensed driving at Yellow Walls Road in Malahide on June 29, 2026.
Garda Dominic Noonan told Swords District Court that he stopped the accused, who immediately told him he was disqualified from driving.
The court heard that the defendant had five previous convictions for road traffic matters.
Defence solicitor Darren Gray, who was privately retained, asked the judge to be as lenient as possible, saying Flynn, a father of five, had struggled with his health and with alcohol in recent years following the sudden death of his son.
In relation to the latest incident, Mr Gray said that his client’s partner was not at home at the time, and Flynn decided to drive to the local shops, which was only five minutes away.
This was a serious lapse in judgment for the IT worker, the solicitor said.
Prior to sentencing, Judge Binchy told Flynn she was very sorry for the loss of his son, and the impact his son’s death had had on his health.
Funded by the Courts Reporting Scheme