Driver who caused serious harm before fleeing scene should not have received suspended sentence, court rules

Ryan Dunne

A man convicted of dangerous driving causing serious harm, after he drove through a red light and collided with a taxi before fleeing the scene, should not have received a fully suspended sentence, the Court of Appeal has ruled.

“The sentencing judge failed to impose a proportionate sentence with respect to the serious offending committed,” said Ms Justice Tara Burns, resentencing Jim Connors (31) to serve four and a half years in prison.

A bench warrant was issued for Connors’ arrest, as he failed to turn up in court to receive the judgement as directed on the last date.

Connors, of Tig Mo Chroi, Glenamuck Road, Carrickmines, Dublin, pleaded guilty at Dublin Criminal Circuit Court last year to five charges including dangerous driving causing serious bodily harm, being the driver of a vehicle where injury was caused to a person and failing to assist that person, failing to offer assistance and doing so to escape prosecution at civil or state level, and driving a vehicle without holding a driver’s licence in Cherrywood, Dublin on February 19th, 2022.

Judge Martina Baxter imposed a sentence of four and a half years, which she suspended in full on condition that Connors keep the peace and be of good behaviour for five years.

The Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) appealed this decision as being unduly lenient.

In delivering the Court of Appeal’s judgement today, Ms Justice Burns outlined the background to the case, saying that Connors drove through a red light and collided with a taxi, which contained three people. Connors, who was disqualified from driving at the time, ran from the scene.

One of the occupants of the taxi sustained severe injuries, including cracked neck discs, back discs, ribs, a broken tibia in his left leg and a fractured right ankle.

In a separate incident on March 19th, 2022, Connors drove away from the gardaí at speed, almost colliding with a garda vehicle. He was found to have cocaine in his system at the time.

Ms Justice Burns said that the Court of Appeal agreed with the sentencing judge regarding the mitigating and aggravating factors in the case. She said that the DPP argued that the entire suspension of the sentence amounted to undue leniency.

“We are of the opinion that the rehabilitation evidence in the instant case was not of such an exceptional level as to merit the suspension of the entire term of imprisonment,” she said, adding that the sentencing judge failed to impose a proportionate sentence with respect to the serious offending committed.

Ruling that the sentence imposed was unduly lenient, Ms Justice Burns said the court would quash the sentence and resentence Connors.

The court imposed a total sentence of four years and six months, with Connors disqualified from driving for ten years.