Man goes on trial for dangerous driving causing death over four years ago

By Sonya McLean

A man has gone on trial charged with dangerous driving causing the death of a woman on a Dublin motorway over four years ago.

Gerry Daly (57) of Derby Lodge, Brownstown, The Curragh, Kildare, pleaded not guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to dangerous driving causing the death of Jacqueline Griffin (39) at junction five of the M50 on January 24, 2019.

Garnet Orange SC, prosecuting, told the jury in his opening statement that Mr Daly entered onto the M50 at around Cherrywood Business Park that morning.

He said it was a rainy January morning and “driving conditions were a long way off optimal”.

Mr Orange said the jury would hear evidence from various witnesses in the trial that around the vicinity of the Blanchardstown exit on the M50 “aspects of Mr Daly’s driving caught people’s attention”.

He said he anticipates there would be evidence that Mr Daly was at that point travelling at speed on the hard shoulder and weaving in and out of traffic.

He then drove onto the slip road that leads to the Finglas/Ashbourne exit.

Counsel said it is the State’s case that Mr Daly’s driving along this stretch again involved driving at speed and weaving in and out of traffic.

He said Mr Daly was driving on the left-hand lane heading northerly towards Ashbourne when “at the very last moment he veered across, very narrowly avoiding a collision with a truck”.

“He got in front of the truck and collided with the car being driven by Ms Griffin, causing an enormous forceful collision,” Mr Orange said.

He described it as a “ferocious collision” which caused Ms Griffin’s vehicle to roll over very quickly.

“Ms Griffin sustained injuries that led to her instantaneous death at the point,” Mr Orange continued.

Counsel said Ms Griffin was “doing nothing other than being compliant” with the rules of the road.

He said “notwithstanding the collision” Mr Daly travelled a further 200 meters along the road before his own vehicle came to a stand still.

“There will be no issue in your mind but that the driving of this car constituted dangerous driving,” Mr Orange suggested to the jury before he added that jury should “have no difficulty concluding that the accident caused the death of Jacqueline Griffin.”

Counsel told the jury there will also be evidence that at the time of the accident, Mr Daly was a type one diabetic and experiencing a related medical condition that affected his ability to drive and he was “not in a position to exercise control over the vehicle”.

The jury was shown CCTV footage from various cameras on the M50 and footage recorded from cameras on a recycling truck that was on the M50 today.

A number of motorist gave evidence of what they noticed that day while they were driving along the M50.

A sales rep who was travelling to Finglas along the M50 said a car sped by on the left-hand side of him.

He later noticed the same vehicle hit a maroon-coloured car which was then thrown onto its side.

The man said the vehicle continued travelling at speed before it hit a second car and came to a stop shortly afterwards.

He got out of his vehicle after he checked to make sure all traffic had stopped.

He headed towards a truck that had been stopped in front of him and noticed the driver climbing out of the cab.

The man said the truck driver was visibly shaking and holding his phone in his hand.

He advised the witness to not look up towards the maroon-coloured car and asked him if he could call the emergency service because he was too shaken to make the call.

A second motorist said he noticed a dark-coloured car coming up on the hard shoulder and estimated that it was travelling at about 150 km/hr.

He then saw the same car cutting across the traffic and later saw the truck stopped and a dark-coloured car on its side.

He said the vehicle was travelling so fast he thought “it was the gardaí or the driver was being chased by the gardaí”.

A taxi driver told the jury he was driving directly behind the truck on the M50 that day when he spotted a dark-coloured car on his left.

“The speed was crazy, really excessive,” the witness said, before he added that the car passed him and veered to the right in front of him forcing him to brake.

He then saw the truck move slightly to the left before it came to a stop.

The taxi driver said he saw the same car crash into a dark-coloured car, forcing it into a barrier and causing the vehicle to flip before the other driver continued driving on.

Each of these motorists agreed with Roderick O’Hanlon SC, defending, that “it appeared” that the speeding car was not responding to the road conditions on the day.

The trial continues before Judge Elma Sheahan and a jury.