Family's upset after fatal crash driver gets suspended sentence

A heartbroken family said they will never forgive a man whose careless driving caused the death of a beloved husband, father, and grandfather.

Dean Harte, aged 22, of Mullingar Road, Tyrellspass, Co Westmeath previously pleaded guilty at Castlebar Circuit Criminal Court to careless driving causing the death of Ciaran Keating and careless driving causing serious bodily harm to Annmarie Keating.

The defendant also admitted to driving a vehicle with tyres of insufficient tread depth. His sentencing hearing took place last week. 

The road traffic collision occurred on the N5 at Ballymiles, Swinford on July 15, 2023. Mr Keating, from Kilsallagh Upper, Westport, and a brother of singer Ronan Keating, lost his life in the crash.

The 57-year old and his wife Annemarie had been been travelling to Sligo to watch their son Ruairi play for Cork City when tragedy struck.

Harte failed to take to take a bend on a stretch of the N5 between Swinford and Bohola. His Audi drifted onto the wrong side of the road and there was a head-on collision with the Keatings' Ford Focus.

Mr Keating was pronounced dead at the scene. Annemarie suffered serious injuries and was unable to attend her husband’s funeral.

The court was told speed was not a factor in the collision. A trace amount of cannabis was found in a blood sample taken from Harte but a trace amount could show in a sample for up to three weeks, the court heard.

Harte said he had been at a party, days before, where cannabis was consumed, but not by him.

The court heard that four minutes before the collision, a Snapchat message was sent from Harte’s phone.

Harte claimed it had been sent when he left Mullingar earlier that day and only delivered at that point.

With no evidence to prove the defendant was on his phone at the time of the collision, Judge Eoin Garavan said he could not take this into consideration.

Harte and a colleague had been travelling to Westport as part of their work when the accident occurred.

A powerful victim impact statement was read on behalf of Mrs Keating and the family by son Conall. The family said their lives would never be the same and they could not forgive Harte.

“Ciarán was the love of my life and the beat of my heart,” Mrs Keating said. “Our once happy home is now a place of desolation."

Mrs Keating said “part of her died” on the day of the crash.

“There is a sadness in me that never goes away. This nightmare is forever in my head.” 

Conall Keating also read a statement on behalf of his sister Aisling, who said she struggled to get out of bed in the mornings and would never be walked down the aisle by her father.

Judge Eoin Garavan said there were mitigating factors taken into account in sentencing, including an early guilty plea.

The court heard Harte was heavily involved in a GAA club and was gainfully employed.

A probation report said he was at low risk of reoffending and had demonstrated genuine remorse. He had written a letter of apology, but this was not accepted by the Keating family.

He has no previous convictions and no substance abuse issues.

Judge Garavan said there was no evidence of intoxication, no speed issues and “no egregious example of earlier dangerous driving”.

He said while there was no clear explanation for what caused the accident it appeared to be as a result of a lapse of concentration and inattention.

The judge handed down a 17-month suspended prison sentence for the offence of careless driving causing death and disqualified the defendant from driving for two years.

In a statement after the verdict, Ruairi Keating said: "The Keating family are surprised and hugely disappointed with the sentence and hope and expect the DPP to appeal the lenience of it. We will be encouraging the DPP to appeal and rightfully fight for justice. Not only for Ciaran and our family but for all of those killed on Irish roads and at the hands of someone else’s careless actions."

Singer Ronan Keating also issued a separate statement in which he said the sentencing was a “devastating example” of how “broken our justice system is”.

“You can kill a man ... and you can walk free. Not even a single night in prison. Just a slap on the wrist and a ticket to carry on your life, like nothing ever happened,” the singer said. “And then we wonder why we keep seeing this kind of behaviour on our roads, why people keep dying in road accidents across Ireland every week?"