18-year-old restricted driver caught speeding at 97mph near Omagh

A DROMORE teenager has been banned for six months after speeding at close to 100mph and driving carelessly in separate incidents.

At Omagh Magistrates Court this week, Gerard Stacey (18), of St George’s Terrace, was sentenced for the motoring offences.

The court heard that, on November 12, 2024, police responded to a collision on the Drumnakilly Road in Omagh.

The victim said that she had been driving straight when a Vauxhall Passat pulled out from a junction, causing the collision.

The defendant later told police that he ‘knew the road’ well but when he came to stop at the junction his brakes failed due to black ice and he slid onto the road. Then, in a separate incident on May 12 this year, a police speed laser clocked Stacey’s car driving at 97mph on Clanabogan Road.

Defence solicitor Patrick Roche explained that, on that night, he was the designated driver leaving his friends home from a night out, and was in a rush to get home.

Mr Roche explained that Stacey was a restricted (‘R’) driver, having passed his test 11 months ago, and needed his licence for work placement.

He added that Stacey’s mother, who attended in court, was ‘appalled’ by the speed, but she had offered to give her son lifts to work and school.

District Judge Ted Magill said that each offence ‘deserved (driving) disqualifications’, adding that the speed was ‘far too high’.

Stacey was banned from driving for six months with a fine of £400.

After sentencing, upon request by Mr Roche, Stacey was released on his own bail of £100 to appeal the sentence. The solicitor did not seek permission for his client to drive pending the appeal.