A POLICE officer who allegedly crashed a patrol car while driving at speeds up to 93mph with a 13-year-old detainee inside told jurors that he felt he “was in control”.
But PC Andrew Barry, 36, admitted that if he could turn back the clock he would.
Barry denied dangerous driving but has admitted a lesser charge of careless driving on February 11, last year.
It is alleged he drove at speeds up to three times the legal limit of 30mph while transporting the girl, a care home runaway, back to St Anne Street police station. He lost control at the junction of St Anne Street and Fox Street and smashed into railings, causing the girl minor injuries.
Giving evidence in his own defence, smartly-dressed Barry said he began to accelerate after the volatile youngster “kicked off” in the back of the patrol car.
He described the girl shouting and screaming a “torrent of abuse” and “fidgeting and wriggling” around in the back seat while kicking his chair.
Barry, who has been an officer for seven years, said: “I illuminated my 999 equipment and called up the radio room and told them she had started to kick off and I accelerated to get back to St Anne St station as quickly as possible. I felt if she continued to behave the way she did she would injure herself or injure me whilst we were en route back to the police station.”
When asked why he did not stop and wait for a caged police vehicle to collect the youngster, the dad-of-three said: “In hindsight I should have done. I've had the chance to reflect over the past 14 months since it happened, every day I run this incident through my head and I made a mistake.”
Barry admitted to jurors passing through two red lights during the two mile journey, but insisted he was “totally satisfied” it was safe to do so.
When asked about his speed, which was logged at 93mph, Barry said: “I felt that I was in control of the vehicle and that I could go at that speed safely on that stretch of the road.”
But he admitted he was unaware how fast he was actually going and would have slowed down if he had realised. He said: “I drove in that way so we could get back to St Anne Street police station as safely and quickly as possible. I made a mistake.
“I went too quickly. With hindsight I shouldn't have done that, but hindsight is wonderful isn't it? I cannot turn back the clock and I cannot change what happened.”
Prosecutors allege Barry used “grossly excessive speed” without adequate reason before the 11.56pm smash.
According to police guidelines Barry should not have exceeded the speed limit by more than 20mph.
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