Child injured in e-scooter accident

Woman cleared of careless driving

A woman was summonsed for careless driving following an accident involving a child and an e-scooter in Nenagh.

The accident occurred on the pedestrian crossing on Borrisokane Road on the afternoon of March 20, 2024. Nenagh District Court heard that the child was coming home from school when he collided with a car on the crossing, injuring his foot.

The driver of the car, Theresa Daly, asked him if he was OK. He replied that he was, and she drove on into Nenagh. The child was brought home by a family friend, and the gardaí and ambulance were called. He was subsequently treated in hospital for a sprain.

His evidence was that Ms Daly “drove over” him, but defending solicitor Elizabeth McKeever said the vehicle driven by her client, a jeep, would have caused a much worse injury had it driven over the boy’s foot. Ms McKeever established that the defendant had returned to the scene immediately afterwards after being flashed at by the driver of another car, though the injured party had left the scene at that stage.

Ms Daly subsequently contacted Nenagh Garda Station to inquire about the boy. She produced her driving licence and left insurance details.

In her evidence, Ms Daly (66) of Rathowen, Mullingar, Co Westmeath, said she was in Nenagh to bring her granddaughter to an appointment. She said she was on the crossing when the e-scooter approached from her left side, and the scooter wheel collided with her left wheel. Ms Daly denied driving over the boy’s foot.

BANNED FOR UNDER 18S

Ms McKeever submitted to the court that the injured party’s account of how he sustained the sprain was not credible. There was no evidence to suggest that Ms Daly was speeding or had done anything else wrong.

Ms McKeever made the point that a new law banning the use of e-scooters on public roads and spaces by anyone under the age of 18 came into effect on the day of the court hearing, October 2 last.

Judge Marie Keane said it was clear to her that the defendant had control of the road and that the injured party had driven onto the pedestrian crossing when it was not free to do so. The onus was on the person on the footpath to stop and ensure they had free passage of the road.

“A pedestrian crossing does not mean that one can just drive on; it must be free of traffic,” Judge Keane said. She was satisfied that the front wheel of the e-scooter had collided with the passenger wheel of the jeep, and the force of impact caused the boy’s sprain. There was nothing Ms Daly could have done about that.

Judge Keane described what happened as a “very unfortunate incident”. She struck out the summons against Ms Daly.