A 22-year-old man has been given a 17-month suspended sentence for careless driving causing the death of Ciarán Keating, brother of Boyzone singer Ronan Keating.
Dean Harte, with an address at Mullingar Road, Tyrellspass, Co Westmeath, was travelling with a work colleague to Westport, Co. Mayo, when his Audi A3 veered onto the wrong side of the N5 and collided head on with a Ford Focus driven by Ciarán Keating (57).
Mr Keating died at the scene at Ballymiles between Swinford and Bohola.
His wife, Annmarie, a front seat passenger, was hospitalised with life-threatening injuries and was not able to attend his funeral due to her medical condition.
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On the directions of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), Harte was charged with careless driving causing death and serious injury. He pleaded guilty.
At a sentencing hearing in Castlebar Circuit Criminal Court on Wednesday, Harte was handed a 17-month prison sentence suspended for two years.
Judge Eoin Garavan also imposed a two-year driving ban. He took into consideration a charge of travelling with a tyre below the minimum tread depth.
Judge Garavan said there was no evidence of intoxication, no speed issues and “no egregious example of earlier dangerous driving”.
The court heard there was no evidence of phone activity by Harte at the time of the impact but he had dispatched a WhatsApp message a short time earlier.
Evidence was also given of trace elements of cannabis in his blood. Harte informed gardaí he had consumed cannabis at a party a couple of nights previously.
John Shortt, counsel for Harte, described the accident as “an absolute tragedy” and said the life of the Keating family has been changed forever.
He said Harte expressed genuine remorse in a letter offered but, perhaps understandably, it was rejected.
Impact statements on behalf of Annmarie Keating and her family were read at the hearing by one of her sons, Conall Keating.
“Ciarán was the love of my life and the beat of my heart,” Ms Keating said.
“I will never get over this and be the same again... Our once happy home is now a place of desolation,” she said.
At the time of the fatal impact, Mr and Ms Keating were on the way to Sligo to watch their son Ruairí play football.
Ronan Keating posted a message on Instagram after the hearing, saying the sentence was “a devastating example of just how broken our justice system is”.
Conall Keating, who brought a photo his late father with him to the witness box, told Harte his actions left the extended Keating family broken and bereaved.
He made it clear the Keating family would never accept his letter of apology.
