An unaccompanied learner driver who was speeding when he hit and killed a teenager has been jailed for nine months.
Gareth Jones (22) swerved to avoid three of the boy’s friends as they crossed the road but hit Paul McCormack (16) who had changed direction to try and get back to the path. Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard there was a fault with the ABS braking system in his Toyota Avensis but that there was no indication Jones was aware of this. The car had a valid NCT at the time.
Michael Bowman SC, defending, told the court today that the victim’s mother, Valerie Hyland, had presented Jones with a letter prior to the hearing. He said the letter communicated an extraordinary degree of understanding and forgiveness.
Mr Bowman said the letter displayed magnanimity and humanity in wishing Jones well with his life and that she would include him in her prayers.
He said the moment had been considerably emotional and there was no enmity between the families. He added that the events had been a tragedy for all concerned.
Jones, of Mellowes Park, Finglas, pleaded guilty to careless driving causing the death of Paul McCormack at Tolka Valley Road, Finglas, on June 26, 2015. He has two minor previous convictions.
The court heard Jones told gardaí he was doing 70 to 80 kmph in the area which had a speed limit of 50kmph. After the collision Jones remained at the scene, accepted responsibility and called an ambulance.
The maximum term of imprisonment for this offence is two years.
Judge Melanie Greally said she had come to a very difficult decision given Jones’ youth and the state of relations between him and Paul’s family. She said the court had wider considerations but noted Paul’s mother’s magnanimity and understanding.
Judge Greally said Jones had been driving in excess of the speed limit and had been undeterred by speed ramps. She said he failed to moderate his speed when he became aware of the group crossing the road and only applied emergency braking at the last minute.
She said he displayed a “catastrophic lack of judgement”.
She said as Jones swerved to the right to avoid the group, Paul had moved into the path of the car and suffered fatal head injuries when his head hit the windscreen. She said Jones’ driving had been “careless in the extreme”.
Judge Greally noted he held a learner’s licence and said the requirement to be accompanied by a fully qualified driver was there for a purpose and if he had been accompanied the outcome may have been different.
She noted that Jones had remained at the scene, called an ambulance and made admissions to gardaí. She said he had shown concern for the injured party and shown remorse.
She said the victim impact statement from the McCormack family had been deeply moving and expressed the pain of living without their son. She noted Paul’s life had been “full of fun, vitality and promise”.
She noted Jones came from a decent, supportive and pro-social family and that he had been deeply affected in the aftermath of the offence. A probation report put him at low risk of re-offending.
Judge Greally said she had to take into account the general deterrent factor of the sentence imposed. She did not think a community based sanction would have the necessary deterrent effect.
She imposed a nine-month sentence and disqualified Jones from driving for five years. She expressed her condolences to the McCormack family.
Fiona Ferguson