Prison sentence for Newtown driver

AN NEWTOWNBUTLER man has been sentenced to prison for causing grievous bodily injury (GBI) by careless driving.
Zacch Donagho (24) of Lurganboy Park, Lurganboy, appeared at Enniskillen Magistrates Court on Monday for sentencing after previously being convicted of driving without a licence, using a car without insurance, failing to report an injury accident, and causing GBI by careless driving.
Police were called to the scene of a collision on Clonfad Road on Christmas Day in 2017. When they arrived they found an Audi A4 crashed into a hedge. A witness told the officers two men in their 20s had got out and left the scene after they were picked up by another car.
It was later discovered Donagho had been the one who had been driving the car and his passenger had been seriously injured in the collision. The pair had been socialising with another man in Clones earlier in the evening. The man was treated at hospital in Cavan for broken bones for a number of injuries, including broken bones in his back and a broken sternum.
When police spoke to the registered owner of the car the woman told them she had previously sold the car to Donagho. The defendant had claimed while contesting the case last month that he had sold the car before the crash, a claim District Judge Steven Keown said there was no evidence to back up.
The court heard that Donagho, who has a previous record in both the South and England, had voluntarily attended Enniskillen Police Station some time after the crash, where he replied “no comment” to all questions put to him.
Defence solicitor Ciaran Roddy said Donagho accepted that it was a very serious matter, where someone had suffered serious injuries, which he said the man had somewhat recovered from.
Mr Roddy said conditions had been poor and the presence of black ice had been a significant factor in the crash, to which Judge Keown replied “depending on what speed you’re doing.”
Urging the court to consider community service, which he said Donagho wanted to do, Mr Roddy said it was not the defendant’s fault it had taken so long for the case to come before court, and said when the incident happened he was in his early 20s which had been a period of offending for him.
The barrister added Donagho had since spent a brief spell in custody, which he said was “a short, sharp wake up call” for the young father which he did not want to experience again. Mr Roddy then handed in two references for Donagho to the court.
Judge Keown said it had been “a terrible case in terms of the facts of the case and the injuries sustained” as a result of Donagho’s actions. He said it was made worse again by the fact Donagho had contested the case “with little or no merit in terms of the prospect of success.”
“In my view you told a pack of lies to the court,” the judge said, adding he felt the custody threshold had been passed.
Judge Keown sentenced Donagho to a total of five months in custody, fined him a total of £400, and disqualified him from driving for three years. Donagho was released on his own bail of £500 pending appeal of the prison sentence.