Two-year jail term imposed on man whose dangerous driving caused eight deaths was "unduly lenient", DPP tells court

The Director of Public Prosecutions has appealed a sentence imposed on a man convicted of dangerous driving that resulted in eight deaths near Buncrana, County Donegal. Shaun Kelly, aged 26, of Hill Road, Ballymagan, Buncrana, pleaded guilty at Letterkenny Circuit Criminal Court to causing eight deaths through dangerous driving on a road between Clonmany and Buncrana on 11 July 2010. The trial judge imposed a four-year sentence with the final two years suspended and imposed a ten-year driving disqualification. The DPP argued before the Court of Appeal that the sentence was unduly lenient, contending it failed to reflect the gravity of Kelly's culpability and the severity of the harm caused. The prosecution submitted there was evidence of prolonged deliberate dangerous driving, that multiple fatalities were foreseeable, and that Kelly had a previous dangerous-driving conviction. Kelly's counsel argued the sentencing judge properly considered all aggravating and mitigating factors. The Court of Appeal reserved judgement.