A Catholic priest has been given a 15-month driving ban after he fell asleep at the wheel of his car and crashed on a busy Cumbrian road.

Keswick-based Father John Moriarty, 36, who had just returned from a gruelling trip to southern France, admitted dangerous driving. Magistrates heard that the priest, who is a pastor for army cadets, crashed into two other cars on the A66 at Warcop.

After returning from France, the priest left his Keswick home at 5pm on July 28 in his Mitsubushi to drive to Catterick Garrison for a two-week army cadet camp.

“He’d slept on and off on the bus trip from midnight up until 4am,” said Mrs Ward. “On the approach to Warcop, he fell asleep and collided with an oncoming BMW. His car bounced off that vehicle and hit a white VW Golf.”

The cars involved were badly damaged, but nobody was seriously hurt.

Lauren Heasley, for Moriarty, said he was both the director of youth services for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Lancaster and also that county’s senior pastor for the Army Cadets.

“He’d returned from a 10-day pilgrimage to Lourdes in the south of France, where he was responsible for 40 young people aged between 15 and 21 and it was a very successful trip,” said he lawyer. The group left Calais at 4am and after arriving in England travelled north.

“Father Moriarty did get some sleep on the coach but it wasn’t the quality sleep one would get in one’s own bed,” said the lawyer.

Arriving at his High Hill home Keswick, the priest realised his mobile was still on the coach and so drive after it to retrieve the phone. That done, he then packed for the trip to Catterick Garrison. He realised now he should have stopped and rested, and phoned Catterick to say he would be late.

He was not fully asleep, but had a momentary lapse, said the lawyer. “He realised he was drifting into the next lane and tried to take evasive action.” But it was too late to avoid the crash.

Afterwards, Moriarty apologised immediately to the other drivers.

A man of previous good character, Moriarty would now have to depend on the good will of others.

He already did unpaid work in the community, and his duties as a practising priest – including administering last rites – meant him going out at all hours, said Miss Heasley. In addition to the ban, magistrates imposed a £398 fine, with a £40 victim surcharge and £85 prosecution costs.