Two years after their daughter's death, the Keane family are still searching for information about the car crash that claimed her life. David Labanyireports.
THE CLOCK on the floor read 9.35pm. It had burst out of its mounting with the force of the impact and lay amid broken glass in the crushed Ford Escort. It had stopped permanently at the time of the crash.
Eileen Keane (18) and her boyfriend Trevor Chute (23) died instantly when their car was hit exiting a cul-de-sac in the tiny townland of Ardoughter, Ballyduff in Co Kerry on April 22nd, 2006.
It is not known if the couple saw the Ford Transit minibus in the split second before it hit the side of their car. The driver of the minibus was badly shocked but otherwise unhurt.
The first reaction for the families of the deceased was shock and grief. Two years later these feelings have been joined by another: intense frustration.
Since the crash Eileen's parents Richard and Kay have become increasingly upset at elements of the investigation and their lack of access to information.
From their visits to the scene they felt the absence of a stop sign or line across the end of the cul-de-sac where it joins the main road may have been a contributory factor, not least because there is a laneway directly opposite the cul-de-sac.
This creates the impression of a continuous road for those unfamiliar with the route they say, adding that Trevor did not know this road.
The crash was investigated by gardaí and Kerry County Council. The gardaí prepared information for the coroner's hearing and a file was sent to the Director of Public Prosecutions.
Kerry County Council prepared a file for their insurance company, the Irish Public Bodies Insurances (IPBI), for use in the defence of any legal claim.
By the time the inquest was held in Listowel the following February, the families were aware that the DPP would not be taking a case, the minibus driver having been found blameless.
Because the cause of death - "severe head and neck injuries" - was clear for both victims, the coroner's hearing did not examine in details the cause of the crash.
Deeply upset that the inquest had not brought finality about the causes of the crash, the family sought access to Kerry County Council's report under the Freedom of Information Act (FoI). The council, as it is entitled to do, claimed legal privilege.
In 2006, the year their daughter died, the Road Collisions Facts report found that "road factors" contributed to 2.5 per cent of road deaths. This means the State recognises that nine of the 365 people killed in crashes that year died because the condition of the road was partly to blame.
However, according to the IPBI, the number of negligence cases taken against local authorities in relation to fatal crashes is so "infinitesimally small" that it cannot be measured.
The problem for families such as the Keanes is that unless the DPP brings a prosecution they have no access to the garda investigation files.
Just as with victims of crime, the DPP will not explain why a prosecution was not taken nor what information was gathered.
Other families in a similar situation have written to the Health and Safety Authority (HSA) asking them to investigate fatal crashes where roadworks were being conducted.
However, local authorities are currently contesting the HSA's right to investigate these cases in the High Court.
The net result is that families are left with no access to information, a vacuum that they say prolongs their grieving.
Noel Brett, head of the Road Safety Authority (RSA) says all too often the focus is on the deaths and does not recognise the trauma faced by the family.
"It is essential that relatives get closure and that they have access to adequate, timely and comprehensive information about the facts of the collision involving their loved one.
"Relatives need to know what caused the collision and the reasons behind any decision not to prosecute," he says.
When the Keane's appealed the refusal by Kerry County Council to release its file to the Office of the Information Commissioner, they were told councils are entitled to withhold such files.
They have contacted the Ombudsman, the Departments of Transport and Justice, the NRA, the RSA, the Information Commissioner and the HSA to try and glean information. At every turn they were told that the agency involved has no role in the investigation of crashes.
The Keanes managed to secure a number of files relating to their daughter's crash, including a copy of the standard CT68 form filled out by gardaí at the scene of every fatal crash.
To their dismay this notes: "drove through stop/yield" as a contributory factor, even though a statement from investigating garda made clear there was no such sign in place.
Within weeks of the crash Kerry County Council erected a stop sign at the junction.
The fact that the CT68 also says "not known" in relation to whether Eileen and Trevor were wearing seatbelts when statements from those attending the scene makes clear that they were cut free from the seatbelts has also angered the family.
They were also perplexed by an observation from the garda PSV inspector who noted in his statement on the collision: "I formed the opinion that the Ford Escort was attempting to turn right towards Ballyduff as it exited the cul-de-sac".
"We have deep misgivings about how the CT68 was filled out. It is such an important document.
"It went to the DPP with 'driving through a stop' as a contributory factor . . . I don't know how you can condone that," says Kay Keane.
"The garda may well have meant that the car went though a junction but that is not clear from the CT68," she adds.
The family believe these references may have influenced the DPP and feel "badly let down by the system". They complained to the Garda Ombudsman about the CT68.
"There is no transparency or accountability. We didn't want to punish anyone, we just want answers. We just wanted a day in court to find out what happened and we didn't get it," says Richard, speaking of his disappointment that the coroner's hearing could not provide more information.
Their struggle is taking its toll. Richard and Kay admit they find it hard to concentrate on other matters. "We have five other children and eight grandchildren and sometimes you would be so bothered you don't give them the attention you should", says Kay.
A consequence of the information in the CT68 is that the Road Collision facts for 2006 lists nine people - including Eileen and Trevor - as having died as a result of driving through a stop sign.
They believe that by attributing this as the official cause has an implication for the accuracy of the statistics and a wider understanding of collision causes.
Efforts by the family to bring a legal case themselves have foundered because the only other witness - the driver Trevor - who could explain whether he was turning or not, is dead.
The Keane family don't hold him responsible, believing - in the absence of the investigation file - he simply didn't realise that he was joining a main road because of the laneway ahead.
Cases where gardaí prosecute a local authority for road deficiencies are almost unheard of, despite this scenario being a factor in roughly 10 road deaths a year.
Although the NRA funds local road projects and sets design guidelines, it has no oversight role. And while local roads are now the responsibility of the Department of Transport it has no oversight role either.
Local authority engineers have the expertise to determine if road factors played a role but they tend to investigate from the point of view of preparing a file for the IPBI. There is also a question mark over council engineers investigating what is often their own work.
According to Mr Brett, road crash investigations "must be transparent, comprehensive and must facilitate relatives in gaining understanding of causation and help them get to closure".
One development which might bring this about would be the establishment of a specialist road crash investigation unit for the Traffic Corps staffed by engineering experts.
Another is that a specific road crash investigation unit - similar to the air accident investigation unit - be set up. This would investigate crashes alongside gardaí with the aim of establishing the cause of the crash.
Last October, the local authorities, gardai and the National Roads Authority introduced Collision Reporting Procedures.
Under this system the local county engineer and the investigating garda visit the scene of serious and fatal crashes within 72-hours to determine whether road-related factors may have played a role in the crash.
If signposts have fallen down or road markings become obscured this can be remedied immediately under the scheme.
However, it will not formally provide additional information to relatives and in many cases the local authority engineers are inspecting their own work.
Either might offer relatives of those killed in crashes the chance to know what happened to their loved ones.