Killer drink-driver is finally sent to jail
A DRINK-DRIVER who smashed into a Garda car, killing a pensioner, has been jailed after appeal judges overturned a lenient sentence of community service.
Adrian Nestor, 44, was over five times the drink-drive limit when he struck the Garda car in the early hours of February 1, 2016.
At the time, gardaí had been helping Liam McDonnell, 66, who had been reported missing. Two gardaí found him and were trying to get him into a patrol car when an Audi, driven by Nestor, struck the three of them, killing the pensioner.
At Galway Circuit Criminal Court, Nestor admitted dangerous driving causing the death of Mr McDonnell near Ardrahan, Co. Galway.
He had 272 milligrammes of alcohol per 100 millilitres of blood at the time of the accident. The legal limit is 50mg per 100mls.
He also admitted causing serious harm to Garda Sharon Casserly, whose injuries were described as life changing. Her colleague, Garda Peter Murtagh, suffered a broken leg in the accident.
The court in Galway had sentenced Nestor, of Keamsella, Kilcolgan, Co. Galway, to 240 hours of community service in place of a four-year prison sentence. He was also fined €1,000 and banned from driving for four years.
The DPP successfully sought a review of Nestor’s sentence on grounds it was ‘unduly lenient’.
The three-judge Court of Appeal agreed and sent Nestor to jail for two years yesterday.
Eoghan Cole, for the DPP, told appeal judges a four-year suspended sentence failed to meet the seriousness of the case and also failed to meet the need for general deterrence.
Mr Cole said Nestor had made a conscious decision to drink and drive and had repeated that decision during the evening, drinking at each location he visited. He said the decision to suspend the sentence in its entirety was ‘flawed’, resulting in an ‘unduly lenient’ outcome.
He said the outcome did not reflect the how Nestor’s drinking aggravated the offence.
Judge Patrick McCarthy said the sentencing judge fell into error for suspending the four-year sentence.
However, he said there were mitigating factors such as Nestor’s guilty plea, remorse and otherwise good character, as well as the ‘serious personal consequences’ he had faced. Judge McCarthy resentenced Nestor to four years’ imprisonment with the final two suspended.
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