A North Kerry man has been sentenced to five years in prison for dangerous driving causing death.
31-year old, Stephen Dillon of The Cottage, Gortacloghane, Listowel appeared before Tralee Circuit Court this afternoon.
Stephen Dillon had previously pleaded guilty to the charge of dangerous driving causing death.
Dymphna Wynne, who was in her 80s, was killed in the collision on January 12th, 2021. Ms Wynne’s husband Brian was also injured in the crash.
The court heard that having finished a work shift, Mr Dillon engaged in a road race with another vehicle.
Mr Dillon lost control of his vehicle at Lawlor’s cross, between Killarney and Farranfore, resulting in his vehicle spinning into Ms Wynne’s car in the opposite lane.
In a victim impact statement, Ms Wynne’s daughter said a piece of herself was left at the road side that evening.
Judge Sinead Behan handed Mr Dillon a headline sentence of seven years, but reduced this to five years due to mitigating factors.
These included his young age, his plea of guilty, that he has no previous convictions, he accepted driving recklessly and at speed and the probation reports highlighting his remorse and low risk of reoffending.
Judge Behan suspended the final year of the sentence for two years upon release and backdated it to when Mr Dillon went into custody.
Mr Dillon was also disqualified from driving for a period of eight years.
