Mayo man fails in court bid to have driving licence restored after six years

A man whose dangerous driving caused the death of his best friend has failed in a bid to have his driving licence restored.

In October 2022, Martin Ditchburn, of Midfield, Swinford, received a three-year suspended prison sentence and a six-year driving ban after pleading guilty to dangerous driving causing the death of 19-year-old Jason Killeen.

Mr. Killeen, of Cullatinny, Knock, was killed following the road accident at Coolnafarna, Ballyhaunis, on September 24, 2020. He was a front seat passenger in the newly purchased Silver Honda Accord car when Ditchburn lost control of the vehicle on a sweeping left-hand bend.

Ditchburn, now aged 27, sought the restoration of his licence at a sitting of Castlebar Circuit Criminal Court. However, gardaí objected to the application.

Sergeant Paul Connolly outlined the circumstances of the fatal road accident. Three of the tyres on the Honda were below the legal tread limit and Ditchburn had a minimal amount of cannabis in his system.

Ditchburn had purchased the car the day before the accident and by his own admission did not use any due diligence to check that the vehicle was safe to drive.

The court heard Ditchburn has four years served of his six-year driving disqualification. He has not come to garda attention since the accident.

Sergeant Connolly said Jason Killeen’s mother Lorraine is opposed to the restoration of Ditchburn’s licence having been informed of the application by gardaí.

Sergeant Connolly said she is very upset about the situation and believes that Ditchburn “has not paid a price for his crime."

The sergeant said Ms. Killeen is of the opinion that Ditchburn should never hold a driving licence again “due to his reckless behaviour which led to her son’s death”. She expressed fears of meeting him driving on the road.

Barrister Diarmuid Connolly, representing Ditchburn, said his client is within his rights to make the application having served two-thirds of his disqualification.

He said Ditchburn has not driven since September 2020 and has in effect been off the road for six years.

The barrister said his client had “lost his best friend” following the crash but acknowledged that his grief pales in comparison to the heartbreak suffered by the Killeen family.

Mr. Connolly said he relies on his mother to drive him to work at a depot in Ireland West Airport.

Judge Eoin Garavan, who originally imposed the suspended sentence and driving disqualification in Castlebar Circuit Criminal Court, said it was an “admittedly lenient sentence".

“That doesn’t mean it was an inappropriate sentence but it certainly was a lenient sentence,” he added.

The judge said he often takes a ‘liberal view’ when it comes to restoring driving licences, but he would not be doing so in this case.

“I am not prepared to give him his licence back.”

He said Ditchburn made “gross mistakes” in his driving on the day his friend was killed.

* Funded by the Courts Reporting Scheme.