Man given suspended prison sentence over crash which claimed Mayo man's life

“Our once happy home is now a place of desolation"

The family of a 57-year-old man who was killed in a road accident while travelling with his wife to see their son play a League of Ireland match in July 2023 reacted angrily and with disbelief when the person responsible for the tragedy escaped a prison sentence.

Dean Harte (22), with an address at Mullingar Road, Tyrellspass, Co. Westmeath, was travelling with a work colleague to Westport when his Audi A3 veered onto the wrong side of the N5 and collided head on with a Ford Focus car driven by Ciarán Keating, a brother of Boyzone star Ronan Keating.

Mr. Keating of Killsallagh, Westport, died at the scene at Ballymiles between Swinford and Bohola.

His wife, Annmarie, a front seat passenger, was hospitalised with life threatening injuries. She was not able to attend her husband’s funeral due to her medical condition.

On the directions of the DPP, Dean Harte was charged with careless driving causing death and serious injury and pleaded guilty.

At a sentencing hearing in Castlebar Circuit Criminal Court, Harte was handed a 17 month prison sentence suspended for a period of two years.

He was also banned from driving for two years by Judge Eoin Garavan

A charge of travelling with a tyre below the minimum tread depth was marked taken into consideration.

Before imposing sentence, Judge Garavan said there was no evidence of intoxication, no speed issues and “no egregious example of earlier dangerous driving."

While the court heard there had been no evidence of phone activity on Harte’s part at the time of the impact he had dispatched a WhatsApp message a short time earlier.

Evidence was also given of trace elements of cannabis in the driver’s blood. Harte informed gardai he had consumed cannabis at a party a couple of nights previously.

Mr. John Shortt, counsel for Harte, described the accident as “an absolute tragedy” and said the life of the Keating family had been changed forever.

He said it can be difficult for the bereaved to accept an apology but a letter from Harte expressing genuine remorse had been offered but, perhaps understandable, had been been rejected.

Powerful impact statements on behalf of Annmarie Keating and her family were read to the hearing by one of her sons, Conall.

“Ciaran was the love of my life and the beat of my heart," Mrs. Keating wrote. “I will never get over this and be the same again."

Mrs. Keating said the sadness of Ciaran’s passing will never go away.

“Our once happy home is now a place of desolation."

At the time of the fatal impact, Mrs. Keating was on her way with her husband to Sligo to watch their son, Ruaírí, play for Cork City in a league match against Sligo Rovers at The Showgrounds.

Conall, who brought a photo his late father with him to the witness box, told Dean Harte his actions had left the extended Keating family broken and bereaved and that his crime was “appalling and incomprehensible."

He made it clear the Keating family would never accept a letter of apology offered by Harte.

Conall Keating, his brother Gary and son Ruaírí, were amongst family members who gathered on the steps of Castlebar Courthouse after the sentencing hearing had concluded.

Reading a statement from his mobile phone Mr. Keating stated: “Today’s sentencing was a devastating example of how broken our justice system is.

“He (Harte) sent a message from his phone while driving at 15.33 p.m., the first 999 call call was 15.37.

“There’s a serious problem with young men and driving in this country and being on the phone while driving.

"You can kill a man and walk free, not even a single night in prison, just a slap on the wrist and a ticket to carry on with your life, like nothing ever happened.

“And then we wonder why we keep seeing this kind of behaviour on our roads, people dying in road accidents across Ireland every week

“It’s a joke and it’s morally corruptive. Rather than trying to fix our broken system, they all turn a blind eye.

"Shame on Dean Harte but more so shame on everyone involved in this process who contributed to the heartbreaking outcome for my family."