Enniskillen Courthouse
A NEWTOWNBUTLER man who was found hiding in garden bushes by police officers after he crashed his car through a fence has been banned from driving.
Barry Christopher Fitzpatrick, of Clonkee Road, pleaded guilty to drink driving after he fell asleep behind the wheel, ploughed through a fence and crashed his car into a garden bench in the early hours of Sunday, July 7.
Nearby police officers were on duty in the Lisnaskea station when they heard a loud noise.
When they went to investigate, they discovered a single road traffic accident where the car had been abandoned and oil spilt over the road.
After checking the details of the car, they discovered that Fitzpatrick, 35, was the owner of the vehicle.
The officers began to search next door’s property and found Fitzpatrick hiding behind a bush.
As officers spoke with the defendant, they noted how unsteady he was, how his speech was slurred and there was a strong smell of alcohol.
He admitted the offence to the officer who then searched the accused and found keys belonging to the car in his possession.
An alcohol reading was carried out which revealed it was over twice the legal drink drive limit at 78mg.
He was then interviewed about the incident on a later date where he admitted that he had been drinking from 5pm the previous day until after midnight.
After falling asleep on a friend’s sofa, he awoke at 4am and decided to drive home.
On the journey home he fell asleep which resulted in the defendant driving straight through the fence and into the garden, causing damage to the fence and garden seating.
The defence solicitor told the court that the incident occurred during the hot weather adding: “For whatever reason he decided he was fit to drive home. He simply panicked after the crash because he knew it happened close to a police station.
“He has strong references and connections to the local community and will not be back in court.
“His limited record dates back to 1998.”
District Judge Liam McNally told Fitzpatrick that it was a bad case which could have had strong consequences when he fell asleep and lost control of the car.
He banned him from driving for 13 months and ordered him to pay fines totalling £415.
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