James O'Brien jailed for dangerous driving causing death

This report is a localnews.ie summary based on public court reporting and records; sources are listed below.

James O'Brien was jailed for four years at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court on 18 December 2018. He had pleaded guilty to dangerous driving causing the death of six-year-old Cian Marren. The proceedings were reported on 18 December 2018.

The offence occurred at Shanganagh Road, Shankill, Dublin, on 28 July 2017, when O'Brien's van struck Cian after breaking a red light. O'Brien later apologised to Cian's father and said he had not seen the red light.

Judge Melanie Greally noted that O'Brien was driving 10km above the speed limit and that the lights had been red for three seconds before the collision. She accepted that he remained at the scene and expressed immediate concern for Cian.

Cian's father, Liam Marren, told the court that the family forgave O'Brien despite their loss. O'Brien had 32 previous District Court convictions, including drink-driving offences. Garda Barry Cormack told the court that the investigation had ruled out drink, drugs and mobile phone use as contributory factors in the collision.