Driver banned for parking in disabled bay – six times!

A woman was put off the road for six months for parking in a disabled bay after it came to light she had done so six times.

Roseanna Cleary of 75 Castlelawn Heights pleaded guilty in Galway Distrct Court  to the summary parking offence committed at Waterside on May 22 last but begged Judge Mary Fahy not to disqualify her.

Cleary, with 79 previous convictions, explained that she had applied for a disabled parking disc and assumed she was allowed to use the parking bays dedicated to people with disability, particularly wheelchair users.

Judge Fahy told Cleary and her defending solicitor, Valerie Corcoran, that there were so few of these parking bays in and around the city that it was unthinkable to take one up when not necessary.

Ms Corcoran said there was no excuse for her client’s behaviour but she asked that her client not be disqualified from driving.

Judge Fahy said in light of Cleary’s previous convictions and that she had done this before, she would not change her mind.

However, Cleary persisted in addressing the Court saying she would pay any monetary fine, no matter what it was and pay money to St Vincent de Paul as long as she wasn’t disqualified for the sake of her children.

Judge Fahy fined Cleary €200 and disqualified her from driving for six months postponing its start date until February 1.