Man with 257 previous convictions who was banned from driving for life is caught drink driving again
A man with 257 previous convictions who had previously been banned from the roads for life has been caught drink driving in the Coleraine area.
Patrick Morgan (50), with an address listed as Church Terrace in Articlave, came to police attention in the Castleroe Road area of Coleraine on Wednesday November 13.
He appeared at Ballymena Magistrates' Court on Thursday via video link from a police station and pleaded guilty to charges of driving with excess alcohol in breath; driving whilst banned; taking his partner's Vauxhall Mokka without consent; and absence of insurance.
Upon looking at the defendant's record, District Judge Nigel Broderick said: "My goodness, 257 convictions".
The court heard the defendant had a preliminary alcohol in breath sample of 70 and when taken to a police station the reading was 46 - the legal limit is 35. The defendant had told police he was "sorry" for Wednesday's incident. The court heard he had been jailed "numerous times" and had been given a nine months jail term in Londonderry in March 2023. At a court in Coleraine in 2000 he had been banned from driving for life. A defence solicitor said that on Wednesday of this week the defendant had taken his partner's car without permission. He said the last driving offence was 2021. Judge Broderick said the defendant's record of 257 previous convictions - including 126 for road traffic offences - was "atrocious". The case was initially adjourned to January for a pre-sentence report and the judge said the defendant should be kept in custody until sentencing as he was "not prepared to take a risk of you being out on the road especially over the Christmas period". He said there was a risk the defendant could cause a "serious if not fatal" accident. A short time later the court was told Morgan wished to forego a pre-sentence report and wished to be sentenced immediately. Judge Broderick said: "When someone is disqualified for life and they keep breaking the Order it does beg a question if this court has sufficient powers". In future, the judge said, the "venue" for any possible subsequent cases involving the defendant should be looked at as the Magistrates' Court could only jail him for a maximum of six months whereas at the Crown Court it would be two years. Jailing the defendant for four months the judge said handing down a driving ban was "superflous" because of the life time road ban but he imposed a five year ban for the case before the court. The judge said the number of convictions was "quite horrific".