A co Galway youth who caused the death of a 12-year-old girl in a hit-and-run incident was jailed for five years and banned from driving for 20 years at Galway Circuit Court.
Raymond Forde (17), from Corrandulla, who pleaded guilty to dangerous driving causing death, drunk driving and leaving the scene of an accident, stated from the witness box that if he could give his life in place of the dead girl's, he would gladly do so.
Judge Kevin Haugh said the incident was a monumental tragedy for the family of the victim, Sharon Creaven, and the family of Forde, but after hearing the evidence he could not countenance anything other than imposing a custodial sentence. The court heard that the Creaven family, who witnessed Sharon's death, were still devastated.
Passing sentence, the judge said he was taking into account the irresponsible attitude Forde had adopted towards his driving since the accident and refused a request from defence counsel Mr Paul Flannery for leave to appeal the length of sentence.
The court was told that Forde had twice used cars to try and kill himself since the girl's death, writing off one vehicle near Shrule and driving another into a bog.
A garda told the court that on the day of her death, Sharon had travelled to Castlebar with her parents and two sisters to play in goal at a bunscoil game and afterwards they watched a football match. Returning from Castlebar that evening, the family decided to have a meal at a pub.
Sharon had just got out of her father's car and was waving to friends when Forde tried to overtake three cars on an unbroken white line, glanced off one car and hit Sharon while she stood in the pub car-park. Witnesses estimated he was travelling at 100 m.p.h. Sharon was thrown on to the bonnet of Forde's car and the impact smashed his windscreen and crushed a metal pillar support for the roof. A witness said the girl was sent flying into the air, spun head-over-heels and landed 80 ft away. She died instantly. Forde's car appeared to stall, stopped briefly and then sped off. He later admitted he had six pints of Guinness before leaving a pub in Shrule, Co Mayo, at 7 p.m. to go to 7.30 p.m. Mass in Ballinfoyle Church, Galway, 25 miles away.
Two companions had pleaded with him not to drive and one had even offered to drive him to Galway, but these offers were refused. After the accident, Forde drove to his uncle's farm in Corrundulla. His uncle brought him home and his father immediately took him to Mill Street Garda Station.
The judge imposed a five-year jail sentence and a 20-year driving ban on the charge of dangerous driving causing death. He also imposed a three-month sentence on a charge of failing to remain at the scene of an accident and on the drunk-driving charge he imposed a further three-month sentence and disqualified him from driving for five years.