A ROSCOMMON man who pleaded guilty to causing death by dangerous driving has been given a two-year suspended prison sentence and disqualified from driving for six years at Roscommon Circuit Court.
Colm Mee (19), Oran, Co Roscommon, was the driver of a Honda Civic travelling at more than 145 km/h which claimed the lives of two of his best friends, including his first cousin, last year.
The crash occurred at 2am on September 28th last year at Bohergarve on the Boyle Road, two miles from Roscommon town.
Pádraic McHugh (17) was pronounced dead at the scene while Kieran Kelly (also 17), was pronounced dead on arrival at Roscommon hospital.
The front-seat passenger, Paul O’Grady (18), was taken to hospital.
The court heard that the car had spun out of control on a bend on the left-hand side of the road, crashed through a stone wall and a fence, subsequently became airborne and came to rest 58m after it had first lost control.
Garda examinations revealed the car had been travelling at 149.11 km/h (92 mph) at the time of impact with a 10 per cent margin of error either way.
Judge Anthony Kennedy said the car had been travelling at “an outrageous speed” and this was the determining cause of the incident.
The four friends had been travelling home from a night out in Sligo. He said he accepted the unblemished character of Mee and felt the defendant was truly remorseful.
In a statement to the gardaí after his arrest, Mee said he remembered the drive back from Sligo, but had no recollection of the incident.
William McHugh, brother of one of the deceased and cousin of the defendant, described Mee in court as an honest and trustworthy person.
“This was a tragic accident. Colm has suffered as a result of this accident and will continue to suffer for the rest of his life”.
He asked the court to be as lenient as possible.
When Mee took to the stand he broke down and apologised to both families and said he was deeply sorry for what happened.
Colm Smyth SC, defending, asked for leniency, saying his client woke up each morning and was hit by the reality of it all.
He was a survivor of a tragic accident who would have to live with the results for the rest of his life.