Taximan hit with fine and driving disqualification

A taximan has been fined €2000 and disqualified from driving for two years for his attack on a young man who spat at his car and which left the victim in need of a life support machine for six weeks.

Taxi driver Gary Devine, aged 31, of Beverton Green, Donabate, followed the victim, Mark Higgins, with the intention of catching up with him and making him wipe the spit off what the court heard was his "very clean kept" car in the early hours of the morning of June 16, 2001.

Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard that in the altercation that followed, Mr Higgins was left seriously injured and hospitalised for a long period of time.

"This is not your normal run-of-the-mill hit and run incidents," Judge Desmond Hogan said and noted that Devine had been unaware that Mr Higgins had been so badly injured.

He said that while medical reports showed Mr Higgins’ injuries were consistent with having been hit by a vehicle, Devine had not deliberately run him over.

The injuries had been caused when Devine pushed him away from the car when he "lunged" at him through the window.

Judge Hogan said he was not imposing a custodial sentence after considering evidence showing that Devine had been under enormous personal and psychological strain at the time and since then.

One of his two children had been suffering at the time from a rare medical condition that required 24-hour care.

The young boy has since died and both his 10-year-old daughter and his wife were now relying on him for support through their bereavement.

Mr Michael O’Higgins SC, for Devine, said should his client be jailed, it would cause significant disruption to an already traumatised family.

He had fully cooperated with gardaí after the incident, and it had, in fact, been his own evidence that formed the basis for prosecution.

Mr Justin Dillon BL, prosecuting, told Judge Hogan that hours after the incident, Devine went to gardaí to report it and later pleaded guilty to reckless endangerment.

Detective Garda Kevin Fields said Mr Higgins, aged 20, of Whitethorn Close, Artane was found unconscious in a laneway in the early hours of the morning by a man who saw him in his headlights when parking his car. He immediately summoned help.

Mr Higgins had suffered severe head and other body injuries and was put on a life support machine in Beaumont Hospital.

Det. Garda Fields said the victim had no memory of what happened to him and had made a remarkable recovery from his injuries.

Devine came to the garda station some hours later after finishing his taxi work and going home. He voluntarily took gardaí to the scene of the incident and made a statement about it.

He said had taken a fare to the Artane Roundabout area and was driving along Kilmore Road where he saw three youths walking together.

Two of them dashed across the road in front of him and one spat at his vehicle before running off.

Devine said the spitting angered him because he kept his car very clean. He reversed back along the road looking for them and searched laneways before eventually spotting the youth who had spat at his car in one of the lanes.

Det. Garda Fields said Devine told how he caught up with Mr Higgins whom he claimed "lunged at him suddenly". He had his window down and the lunging frightened him.

Devine said he put his arm out to push Mr Higgins away and drove off quickly without seeing what might have happened.

He became worried later and went to the gardaí saying he didn’t report the matter earlier because he hadn’t being thinking straight.

Det Garda Fields said Devine told gardaí he didn’t see Mr Higgins fall and if he was aware of the injuries caused he would have assisted him.

The medical view was that the victim had been struck by a vehicle but Devine said Mr Higgins had not been dragged by his car.