Parents’ relief at court ruling over girl’s death
A MOTHER has said she “is just so glad” that a judge decided not to overturn the sentence handed to the teenage driver who caused the death of her 12-yearold daughter. The teenager had been driving a beach buggy in Newry when it crashed into a pick-up truck, killing Nicole Fegan (above). “It’s just desperate that it had to get to this,” said Nicole’s grieving mum Margo after yesterday’s failed appeal by the girl.
A MOTHER has said she “is just so glad” that a judge decided not to overturn the sentence handed to the teenage driver who caused the death of her 12-yearold daughter.
A judge yesterday affirmed the sentence handed to the girl, who was driving a beach buggy when it crashed into a pick-up truck, after the teenager appealed.
Tragically, as a result of internal bleeding caused by a laceration to her liver, Nicole Fegan died on her way to hospital on what was her parents’ wedding anniversary.
Sitting with two lay magistrates at Newry County Court, Judge Gordon Kerr QC said they had “considered carefully” defence submissions that the four-year driving ban imposed on the 16-year-old defendant was too long.
However, having taken into account the circumstances of the offence and the “potential future dangerousness, we consider that the disqualification was perfectly appropriate”.
Last August the 16-year-old schoolgirl, who cannot be identified because of her age, was convicted of causing Nicole’s death by careless driving on November 18, 2017.
She was also convicted of being an unlicensed driver causing death and being an uninsured driver causing death.
In October, District Judge Des Perry imposed an 18-month probation order and banned the teenager from driving for four years.
He said that, having thought about the case in the days leading up to the hearing, “the impact it would have on the parents of Nicole to see the defendant driving around the roads in a relatively short period of time... to my mind that would be horrendous”.
Speaking yesterday after the failed appeal, Nicole’s grieving mum Margo said she and her husband Cathal were “just glad that the judge didn’t overrule what was done in the first place”.
“We are just so glad that he stuck with that. That was our concern and that’s all that we could’ve asked for,” she added.
“It’s just desperate that it had to get to this.
“We just try to get through the days. That’s all you can do.”
“This time of the year is the worst. It’s horrible, but we just try to get through it because there’s no fixing it.
“Unfortunately, that’s all you can say about it.”
Defence QC Greg Berry told the court yesterday’s appeal was centred solely on the length of the driving ban and submitted that while it was “a tragic case”, Judge Perry was wrong to impose the lengthy disqualification.
He argued that “the law requires you to look at whether there’s a need to protect the public” if a longer than mandatory ban is to be imposed, submitting that the schoolgirl posed no danger to the public.
“The judge (in the lower court) said that he took into account the fact that Nicole’s parents could see her driving before very long. That’s a noble sentiment, but it’s wrong,” declared the senior lawyer.
Prosecuting counsel Fiona O’Kane reminded the court of the facts of the case and how the death of Nicole, “who was a complete joy to her family”, tragically came about.
The judge heard that the defendant, who was 14 at the time, was driving an American-made beach buggy, which had a top speed of 60mph, to get more petrol when it collided with a pickup truck on the Flagstaff Road in Newry.
Mrs O’Kane said the driver of the Toyota Hilux told the court he braked as hard as he could and pulled over to the verge on the country road, but the collision could not be avoided.
Nicole was able to get out of the buggy, but she collapsed at the side of the road and the air ambulance was called to take her to hospital.
Judge Kerr and the panel heard that the manual for the beach buggy warned it was not suitable for roads and that seatbelts and helmets should be worn by the driver and passenger, but neither Nicole nor the driver were wearing helmets. A report also showed the seatbelt on the passenger’s side, where Nicole was sitting, was broken.
Mrs O’Kane conceded speed was not an issue in the case as both vehicles were estimated to be travelling at less than 10mph when they collided and that although the teenager was initially charged with the more serious offence of causing death by dangerous driving, Judge Perry said the facts fell short of that, hence his conviction for death by careless driving.
“He also found that the parents of the defendant should have exercised a higher degree of supervision both in relation to the child and the use of the vehicle to ensure that access to public roads was not available,”