A young man whose careless driving caused the death of a young French woman has avoided a custodial term for that offence, but must wait overnight to see if he will be jailed for drugs offences.
Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard that Alicia Guilleux (31) and her partner Florian Avril were visiting Ireland on a trip to celebrate a birthday when they were struck by an SUV driven by Shaun Kelly (33) as they crossed a street in central Dublin while holding hands.
Kelly was turning right from a minor street, Fade Street, on to South Great George’s Street.
Mr Avril was pushed clear of the vehicle but Ms Guilleux was dragged underneath the Ford Ranger and sustained catastrophic injuries. She died two days later in hospital.
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Ms Guilleux was described by her family as an elegant, bubbly young woman known for her kindness. She loved to travel and had plans to set up her own business. Her mother said her favourite phrase had been: “Enjoy life, because you only get one.”
Mr Avril described how Alicia used to tell him to live each moment to the full. He says he has mourned her loss every day since her death, which he described as the worst day of his life.
Kelly was tested and was clear of any intoxicants, but drugs were later discovered in the car and he subsequently admitted he had been in the area at the time for the purpose of selling drugs.
Kelly, of Thornhill Gardens, Celbridge, Kildare, pleaded guilty to careless driving causing the death of Ms Guilleux at South Great George’s Street, Dublin 2, on December 11th, 2021.
He further pleaded guilty to possession of ecstasy, cocaine, ketamine and TCP, a hallucinogenic drug, on the same occasion for sale or supply.
Passing sentence on Monday Judge Martin Nolan said the first matter had been a tragic incident and the court expressed its condolences and sorrow to all parties. He said Ms Guilleux’s death had been a huge loss and she could not be replaced in the lives of those affected.
He said it seemed to him, from listening to the evidence and watching the CCTV footage, that Kelly had made one big mistake. He said it should have been obvious that the couple were on the road and he should have noticed them on the road and driven a different way.
The judge said every driver was capable of inattention, and in such case the courts must look to see of there were any aggravating factors or any intentional misbehaviour that endangered road users.
He said there had not been any great speed involved, he had not taken any intoxicants, was not driving in any great reckless way but he was inattentive.
“It seems to me he was guilty of human failure on the night,” the judge said, “he did not ... notice the couple crossing the street when he should have”.
The judge outlined the mitigation including Kelly’s guilty plea, admissions, co-operation, lack of previous convictions and the absence of aggravating factors in the case.
It seemed to him the court would not be justified in imprisoning him at this point for the crime of careless driving causing death.
He imposed a sentence of one year which he suspended in full. He disqualified Kelly from driving for one year.
The judge said he would think about the drug offence, which he considered to be a totally separate matter, overnight and give his decision in relation to that on Tuesday.
The court heard the car had been seized and drugs valued at just over €3,088 were found in a magnetic box attached to the engine block.
David Fleming, defending, handed in a letter of apology from his client which outlined his “profound and heartfelt remorse” at the tragic events.
He said not a day goes by when he does not think about what he could have done differently on “that awful day”.
Counsel said it was a complicating factor that the drugs were found in the car but submitted the offences were separate to one another. He said Kelly regrets becoming involved in drugs, but could not have foreseen that it would lead to these circumstances.
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