School principal crashed into van after falling asleep at the wheel
Photo for illustration purposes
A SCHOOL principal who briefly fell asleep while driving and crashed into a parked van on the hard shoulder of the M9 has been fined €400 at Carlow District Court.
Simon Thompson, 20 Grosvenor Terrace, John’s Hill, Waterford pleaded guilty to careless driving contrary to section 52(1) of the Road Traffic Acts.
The court heard that on 8 July 2024, Garda Ryan was called to a road traffic accident involving two vehicles on the M9 at Tinryland. Mr Thompson (59), who was travelling southbound, had collided with a stationary van that was broken down on the hard shoulder.
Garda Ryan told the court that the van’s occupant, who was resting in the passenger seat at the time of the collision, was taken to St Luke’s Hospital but suffered no serious injuries. Mr Thompson also escaped without serious injury.
“They were very lucky that it was only soft-tissue damage to both parties,” said Garda Ryan.
Defence solicitor John O’Sullivan said his client had been bringing his son to Dublin Airport and “had planned to rest, but nodded off for a second”.
The court was told that Mr Thompson is fully insured and that he and his wife had paid €2,230 for the emergency services that were called to the scene, which Mr O’Sullivan described as “to his great credit”.
The solicitor explained that the defendant, who works as a school principal, was moving house and then bringing his son to the airport all on the same day and “got exhausted”.
Mr O’Sullivan asked for the benefit of the Probation Act for his client, noting that, given the nature of his work in education, he is subject to garda vetting and “a conviction could cause certain problems”.
Judge John O’Leary declined to disqualify the defendant from driving, but described the incident as “reckless, careless driving”.
“He knew he was tired and ought to have acted sooner,” said the judge, adding that it was “a pretty egregious manner to drive” and “there but for the grace of God …”
The court heard that Mr Thompson had no previous convictions.
Judge O’Leary imposed a fine of €400, giving the defendant four months to pay.
