A man who crashed his car at speed into the back of an articulated lorry walked away from the scene where his friend lay dead in the passenger seat, a court has heard.
The car, driven by Jake Kelly (22), was trapped underneath the lorry trailer in the wake of the crash, which occurred in July 2023. The passenger side of the car was covered in tarmacadam which poured out of the back of the articulated lorry upon impact, Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard on Tuesday.
Emergency responders who arrived at the scene were not aware there was a passenger in the car and the body of the young man, Ross Rice, was discovered a couple of hours after the crash.
Neighbours described hearing a “massive explosion” in the wake of the crash, which caused their windows to shake.
Kelly was helped out of the driver’s seat by the truck driver in the immediate aftermath of the collision and then walked away from the scene. He later told gardaí he wasn’t sure if his friend had got out of the car and thought he might have been in the fields nearby.
The two friends were going hunting that night and two lurcher dogs were later found in the boot of the car. The speedometer of the car was found stopped at 162km/h. The speed limit of the road is 60km/h.
Kelly, of Ballyfermot Road, Ballyfermot, pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to one count of dangerous driving causing the death of Mr Rice at Dublin Road, Celbridge, Co Kildare on July 18th, 2023.
He also pleaded guilty to failing to report a crash and driving without insurance on the same date. He was on bail at the time for other offences which were later struck out, the court heard.
A number of Mr Rice’s family and friends were in court for the sentencing hearing. Four victim impact statements were handed into court, but not read aloud.
Gda Jennifer Finnegan told Tessa White BL, prosecuting, that gardaí responded to reports of a crash at around 10.40pm that night.
The court heard the driver of the articulated lorry was carrying out road works, had just picked up fresh tarmacadam and was stopped at temporary traffic lights when he noticed a car driving at speed behind him.
The Toyota Avensis, driven by Kelly, crashed into the back of the lorry trailer, causing it to be shunted forward by 1.4 metres. The car was trapped under the trailer and the crash caused tarmacadam to pour on top of the passenger side of the vehicle.
The truck driver immediately went to the driver’s side of the car and managed to pull Kelly out of the car. He left momentarily to ring gardaí and when he returned to the scene, Kelly was gone. Kelly did not sustain any serious injuries in the crash, the court heard.
He was arrested a couple of days later and told gardaí he caught a taxi to his mother’s house after the crash.
The court heard Mr Rice died of blunt force head and chest injuries. His death was instantaneous, the court heard. A backpack containing torches and whistles was found in the car, as well as a small amount of cannabis. The dogs were taken to a veterinary hospital.
Judge Baxter said she needed time to consider the case and adjourned it for two weeks to December 11th for sentence. She revoked Kelly’s bail and remanded him in custody until that date.
Judge Baxter addressed Mr Rice’s family and friends in court, telling them “you have our deepest sympathies and condolences”.