The Court of Appeal has left in place a six-year prison sentence, with the final year suspended, for dangerous driving causing serious harm. It dismissed Shane Murphy’s appeal against the severity of the sentence, saying the appropriate headline sentence should have been seven and a half years, but that mitigating factors would have reduced it to the same six-year term.
Murphy had pleaded guilty to dangerous driving causing serious harm and two theft counts arising from an incident on Blackrock Road, Cork, on 8 March 2017. Cork Circuit Court sentenced him on 24 October 2017. The appeal concerned only the sentence for dangerous driving causing serious harm.
The judgment said Murphy was driving while intoxicated and disqualified when his car collided with a parked car, forcing it onto the footpath. A woman walking with her six-month-old son in a buggy was knocked down; the buggy and baby were pinned against a wall. The child suffered a fractured skull and was receiving regular neurosurgical reviews at the time of sentencing. The mother’s victim impact report described the incident and its effect on her and her child.
After the collision, Murphy and his passenger retrieved items from the car and fled. A witness followed them and contacted Gardaí. The judgment said Murphy admitted driving, fleeing the scene and smoking cannabis before the collision; analysis confirmed cannabis use. Stolen items from two retail stores were found in his possession. He had 184 previous convictions, including 14 road traffic offences.
The appeal argued that the sentencing judge had given insufficient weight to mitigation and Murphy’s personal circumstances. The court noted his early signed guilty pleas, cooperation with Gardaí, remorse and efforts at rehabilitation in custody, including a methadone programme, education and an anger management course. It also recorded that he had not sought bail.
The Court of Appeal said nearly every conceivable aggravating factor was present, including intoxication, driving while disqualified, prior driving convictions and fleeing the scene. It considered seven and a half years the appropriate headline sentence. But, taking account of the signed guilty plea, remorse and rehabilitation, it said the final sentence would still have been six years, with the last year suspended. The court therefore did not quash the sentence. It also reiterated that an early guilty plea is a strong mitigating factor, except in exceptional cases.