Man gets 5 years and ban for driving car at garda

A man who drove at a garda with a 16-year-old pregnant girl in the back of the car has been jailed for five years and banned from driving for life.

Cathal Dunleavy, aged 23, appeared before Letterkenny Circuit Court in Co Donegal yesterday.

He was previously jailed for stealing a car during an incident in which Garda Robbie McCallion was killed in 2009.

He appeared in court yesterday charged with 16 offences including a dozen dangerous driving charges and one of endangering the life of a garda.

Dunleavy, of Meentagh, Glenvar, Kerrykeel, led gardaí on a 20-minute chase before reversing towards them with a 16-year-old pregnant girl in the back of the car.

He admitted driving an Opel Corsa car at Garda Patrick Geraghty at Milltown, Kerrykeel on Oct 18 last year.

A 20-minute video, taken from a pursuing Garda car, was shown to the court.

Co-accused Gary Gibbons, of Glenvar, Kerrykeel, could be seen on the video throwing beer bottles at the pursuing Garda car.

Jailing Dunleavy, Judge O’Hagan described the incident as absolute madness and said it was a miracle nobody was killed or seriously injured.

He sentenced him to five years in jail for endangering the life of Garda Geraghty and six months each on all the other charges.

The sentences will run concurrently.