General News
19 January, 2023
Man loses licence over 2022 crash
A man who broke his hip and sternum in a car crash last year has lost his licence and been fined almost $1000, after it was found he had cannabis and alcohol in his system. Darrell Mcaleese represented himself in the Maryborough Magistrates’ Court...
A man who broke his hip and sternum in a car crash last year has lost his licence and been fined almost $1000, after it was found he had cannabis and alcohol in his system.
Darrell Mcaleese represented himself in the Maryborough Magistrates’ Court last week, where he pleaded guilty to two charges of drug driving and careless driving.
The court heard that on February 16 last year, at around 10.05 pm the accused was driving north along the Ballarat-Maryborough Road when he lost control of his vehicle near the Elma Court, Daisy Hill turn off.
The vehicle, of which Mr Mcaleese was the sole occupant at the time, veered across the road and collided with a tree, before hitting a fence and coming to a stop, suffering extensive damage.
Police prosecutor Leading Senior Constable Peter Clarke told the court the accused exited the vehicle and began walking towards Maryborough, with emergency services unable to locate him for five hours.
“At approximately 10.52 pm, police attended the scene and photographed the vehicle and were unable to locate the accused,” he said.
“On February 17 at approximately 3.05 am, other police officers located the accused in bushland off the Ballarat-Mary-borough Road, near the Denherts Road turn-off.”
The court heard the accused was conveyed to the Ballarat Base Hospital for treatment, having suffered a broken sternum and hip in the collision.
Tests undertaken while the accused was in hospital revealed the presence of alcohol and cannabis in his system at the time of offending.
In sentencing, Magistrate Sharon McRae said she had no choice but to cancel Mr Mcaleese’s licence and disqualify him from driving for six months.
“You haven’t got a very good history of drink driving, they go back a long way,” she said.
Mr Mcaleese was convicted and given an aggregate fine of $900 plus $131.50 in legal costs.