Enniskillen Court House RMG10
AN ENNISKILLEN woman who said she didn’t know she was still banned from driving when stopped by police has been given probation and disqualified for a further year.
Sonia Dorrian (40) of College Park Lane, Chanterhill was charged with driving while disqualified, fraudulently using a licence and driving without insurance after being stopped on Friday, September 4 this year.
Police had observed Dorrian driving a red Audi on the roundabout on the Irvinestown Road on the day in question. The officers followed behind her car, without losing sight of it, and then stopped her when she reached the Chanterhill Road.
The officers carried out checks and confirmed Dorrian had been disqualified from driving in February 2015, and there were also outstanding money warrants in her name. Dorrian denied knowledge of being banned from driving in her police interview, and said she didn’t know she had to hand her licence to the court previously.
At Enniskillen Magistrates Court on Monday defence barrister Ciaran Roddy said Dorrian had believed her disqualification had ended, but she hadn’t carried out any checks to be sure she was allowed to be on the road in what he said was “an abdication of her responsibilities.” He added she didn’t realise she had to hand her licence into court at the time of her first disqualification.
Mr Roddy said Dorrian had “gone out of her way” to give her licence to police when she was stopped as it was her belief at the time she was not committing an offence. He said the defendant had “a number of issues”, including social anxiety which had prevented her from speaking with her solicitors, who could’ve told her she was disqualified for a further six months.
Stating she had difficulties in her life, Mr Roddy said offending had only been “a recent phenomenon” for Dorrian, and said the defendant could benefit from the services provided by probation.
Judge Broderick said Dorrian’s previous disqualification was in place until February 2017, and the question for him was how long to extend the ban for. Addressing the defendant directly, he told Dorrian a lot of her problems were of her own making and said “hopefully probation will help you put your life back in order” because she could face a prison sentence in future.
Judge Broderick sentenced Dorrian to 12 months probation, ordering her to carrying out any programme of work set out for her, and disqualified her from driving for 12 months, meaning she is now disqualified until November 2017.
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