classic33
Leg End Member
Man disqualified from driving jailed for killing cyclist
"A 27-year-old man who knocked down and killed a cyclist in Dublin last year while he was banned from driving has been sentenced to two-and-a-half years in prison.
Christopher Coleman from Reuben Street in Dublin pleaded guilty to dangerous driving causing the death of Eugene Maher, 62, on the Clontarf Road on 30 June 2015.
He also admitted leaving the scene and driving without insurance after he presented himself to gardaí six days later.
Judge Melanie Greally said the grief and anger of the Maher family was palpable and she commended them on their great dignity.
Coleman was driving well above the speed limit in the bus lane along the Clontarf Road with a group of friends.
Earlier a front seat passenger was seen hanging out the window gesturing towards another car.
When Coleman tried to stop the car at red lights by hitting the brakes and doing a handbrake turn, the car spun around and hit Mr Maher.
He was cycling across the junction when he was thrown on to the windscreen and landed on the road.
Mr Maher died of head injuries a few hours later in hospital.
Coleman drove off at speed, dangerously overtaking a number of other cars.
Confessing to gardaí six days later, he said he was sorry for not having the courage to stay at the scene and claimed he had been trying to make an amber light.
He knew he was driving too fast but did not know how fast.
A garda report said if he had been driving at the speed limit of 50km/h he would have stopped in 15 metres - five metres away from Mr Maher.
Skid marks showed the car stopped in just under 30 metres.
Judge Greally said it was clear that Mr Maher was a man in the prime of his life and the heart and soul of his family and that his death had been abrupt and brutal.
Coleman never held a driving licence and had been disqualified from driving three times in the previous five years.
But the judge said he grew up in challenging circumstances in Fatima Mansions.
His father was an alcoholic and his mother a drug addict but he was in a stable relationship and had completed a skills course and was at low risk of reoffending.
She also said the court does not doubt the sincerity of his remorse and sentenced him to two-and-a-half years in prison."
"A 27-year-old man who knocked down and killed a cyclist in Dublin last year while he was banned from driving has been sentenced to two-and-a-half years in prison.
Christopher Coleman from Reuben Street in Dublin pleaded guilty to dangerous driving causing the death of Eugene Maher, 62, on the Clontarf Road on 30 June 2015.
He also admitted leaving the scene and driving without insurance after he presented himself to gardaí six days later.
Judge Melanie Greally said the grief and anger of the Maher family was palpable and she commended them on their great dignity.
Coleman was driving well above the speed limit in the bus lane along the Clontarf Road with a group of friends.
Earlier a front seat passenger was seen hanging out the window gesturing towards another car.
When Coleman tried to stop the car at red lights by hitting the brakes and doing a handbrake turn, the car spun around and hit Mr Maher.
He was cycling across the junction when he was thrown on to the windscreen and landed on the road.
Mr Maher died of head injuries a few hours later in hospital.
Coleman drove off at speed, dangerously overtaking a number of other cars.
Confessing to gardaí six days later, he said he was sorry for not having the courage to stay at the scene and claimed he had been trying to make an amber light.
He knew he was driving too fast but did not know how fast.
A garda report said if he had been driving at the speed limit of 50km/h he would have stopped in 15 metres - five metres away from Mr Maher.
Skid marks showed the car stopped in just under 30 metres.
Judge Greally said it was clear that Mr Maher was a man in the prime of his life and the heart and soul of his family and that his death had been abrupt and brutal.
Coleman never held a driving licence and had been disqualified from driving three times in the previous five years.
But the judge said he grew up in challenging circumstances in Fatima Mansions.
His father was an alcoholic and his mother a drug addict but he was in a stable relationship and had completed a skills course and was at low risk of reoffending.
She also said the court does not doubt the sincerity of his remorse and sentenced him to two-and-a-half years in prison."
