Shaun Kelly's dangerous driving sentence set aside

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

Shaun Kelly’s two-year jail term was set aside in November 2015 following a successful appeal by the DPP, after it was considered unduly lenient. The proceedings were reported on 7 December 2015. A new sentence remained pending, with the report saying it could be announced later that afternoon.

Kelly, of Hill Road, Ballymagan in Buncrana, Co Donegal, had originally received the two-year prison term. His dangerous driving on 11 July 2010 caused the deaths of seven of his friends and 66-year-old farmer Hugh Friel in a collision between Buncrana and Clonmany in Co Donegal.

Three affected families had written down their views on the renewed sentencing, and their statements were handed into court on the afternoon of 7 December 2015.

Kelly’s barrister suggested that a suspended sentence could be far more effective than time in prison. The report said all the victims lived within a 15-mile radius of each other. The barrister said the community would not begin to heal properly until Kelly was released. The court was also asked to consider Kelly’s pain as a significant factor.