A former model who was sentenced to four years in prison after pleading guilty to dangerous driving causing the death of her friend has been released from prison almost 18 months early.
Jennifer Thomas, 48, of 10 Oakfield View, Glanmire, Cork, was sentenced in November 2024 to five years, with the last year suspended, after she pleaded guilty to driving in a manner that was dangerous to the public, thereby causing the death of 50-year-old Sheila Dunne at Sarsfields Court on February 11, 2023.
The court was told Ms Thomas had driven after drinking 12 alcoholic beverages on the day of the incident.
The Irish Examiner has learned Ms Thomas was given reviewable temporary release from prison in June. She was not due for release from her sentence until November 2027.
It is understood overcrowding within the prison system, particularly in the women’s facilities in Limerick Prison and the Dóchas Centre, was a factor in why Ms Thomas was granted release.
Reviewable temporary release is granted subject to a range of conditions which are tailored to each individual.
Typically, such conditions include having to sign on at either a Garda station or a prison.
Failure to obey the imposed conditions would result in the temporary release being revoked.
Ms Thomas, a mother of three, had driven a number of times on the day of February 11 before the fatal drive which led to the death of Ms Dunne.
The vehicle she was driving crashed and turned over, causing catastrophic injuries to her friend and front-seat passenger.
The court also heard that on one occasion, while stopped in traffic that evening, she failed to drive off for over eight minutes, causing traffic from behind to beep and pass her.
One motorist saw she was asleep at the wheel.
It also emerged the vehicle driven by Ms Thomas was subsequently seen going on to the incorrect side of the road and later stopping for five minutes.
It hit a number of traffic cones, knocking them over, while two pedestrians narrowly escaped being hit by the vehicle.
During the court hearing, Judge Helen Boyle said: “It is not a crime to go out with your friend [and have a few drinks], but it is a crime to get behind the wheel of the car.
“You could have had a designated driver or taxi or a bus or walked. Unfortunately, you sealed the fate of the passenger in that car.”
Ms Thomas is a former model who then opened her own boutique, Love Life Fashion Fix, during the pandemic.