Courts / Dublin / Report
Uninsured learner driver left child in wheelchair for six months
Summary
A man has been jailed for eight months after he struck a child, leaving him needing surgery and in a wheelchair for six months, while driving as an uninsured and unaccompanied learner. Dennis Dunne (26) of Kilmahuddrick Lawns, Clondalkin, Dublin 22, pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to careless driving causing serious bodily harm to the then eight-year-old boy on May 25, 2024. The court heard that the child later required surgery for two bones that were fractured just above his ankle. He was bed bound for a short time and also needed to use a wheelchair for six months. Garda Sean Birkby told David Staunton BL, prosecuting, that a witness to the accident saw three boys on their bikes and scooters on the footpath before she heard a loud bang and a young boy "went up in the air". She saw the child's leg was badly injured and he asked for his mother. The child's father arrived and an ambulance was called. The witness saw the car that was responsible for the accident had driven off.
Who, what, where, when and why
What: Report matter: Uninsured learner driver left child in wheelchair for six months. Charges or matters: careless driving causing serious bodily harm to the then eight-year-old boy on May 25, 2024. Procedural stage: sentence
When:
- May 25, 2024 Hearing Or Sentence
- May 29, 2023 Other
- 2025-12-01 Publication
Case subjects
Defendant
Charges: careless driving causing serious bodily harm to the then eight-year-old boy on May 25, 2024 (Admitted)
Plea: Guilty
Outcome: Judge Nolan said Dunne has many good points "but he cannot behave in this way", before he imposed a sentence of eight months in prison.
Places mentioned
- Dublin
- Dublin Circuit Criminal Court
- He later attended the garda station
Topics
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