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AN UNACCOMPANIED LEARNER driver who was involved in a fatal collision with a food delivery motorcyclist has been given a suspended 12-month sentence.
In Dublin Circuit Criminal Court today, Kaine Ugwu (25) was ordered to pay €10,000 to both the fiancee and the mother of the dead man, Fernando Coimbra de Almeida Morato.
Ugwu, with an address at Cassian Court South, Royal Canal Bar, Ashtown, Dublin pleaded guilty to careless driving causing the death of Morato at North Circular Road, Dublin, on 8 December, 2017. He has no previous convictions.
Morato, a 34-year-old Brazilian national, was working as a food delivery driver when Ugwu collided with him while attempting to turn right at a green light. Ugwu, originally from Nigeria, had been driving in the country for three months at the time.
Handing down sentence, Judge Elma Sheahan said Morato’s death was “heartbreaking” for his family. She said Ugwu, who holds a master’s degree in law and is training to be a solicitor, had chosen to drive unaccompanied on the evening in question.
“He chose to proceed [to turn right] when it would appear it was careless to do so, with a tragic outcome for Mr Morato and his loved ones,” the judge said.
The judge accepted Ugwu had not drank alcohol and was not speeding at the time of the offence. She noted he cooperated with gardaí and that his chances of proceeding in his chosen career would be greatly affected by the conviction.
The court heard Ugwu’s visa to remain in the country has since expired, and the judge noted this could also be an issue for him.
“He will forever carry this burden of the loss of life of another human being and this loss of life will be forever his, regardless of this court’s judgment,” the judge said.
She suspended the sentence on a number of conditions, including that Ugwu pay the €20,000 to Morato’s family within six months.
Judge Sheahan adjourned the matter to next June to ensure the money has been paid and she ordered that Ugwu be allowed to remain in the country until then. She also suspended him from driving for six years.
In a victim impact statement which was previously read out in court, Morato’s fiancée said she felt like she died along with the deceased.
She said she did not want to leave her house after returning to Brazil and the entire year of 2018 went by without any life or meaning.
She said that by no means could she measure the pain, the emptiness and the hole that exists in her heart that she will carry for the rest of her life.
Seamus Clarke SC, defending, said his client wished to express his clear regret and sadness. He said that what happened will continue to haunt his client for the rest of his life.
He said Ugwu was working as a legal executive in a law firm at the time of the incident, but has since lost this employment.
Too lenient a sentence
In this country you can kill someone and you will not spend a day in jail.. shocking
@David Gannon: yep, just use a car to kill and all you’re likely to get is a slap on the wrist.
@David Gannon: I’m torn on the matter. It’s a tragic accident from carelessness and disregard but from someone with a clean record and what good would come from imprisonment when there was no malicious intent? Do you think he’s a risk to re-offend?
I’m far more concerned about the folks with 91 previous convictions roaming our streets.
@Rochelle: A prison sentence would be of benefit because it sends a message to other learner drivers going around unaccompanied. Justice needs to be seen to be done by all in society
@Rochelle: I can see your point Rochelle, but time after time we have dangerous driving cases, where juries are loath to convict, as ‘there but for the grace of god go I’ kicks in and juries feel sorry for the accused. When they DO convict, judges too let the same emotion cloud their judgement and they give overly lenient sentences. This has happened time after time. Last year there was a case where a truck driver killed a woman on the M50, her car had broken down and she was on the phone to her insurance company when the truck driver killed her. He admitted being distracted and got a similar sentence to this. For distracted, maybe read on his phone. The judge ruled ‘Ah sure, who hasn’t been distracted at some point’ Its not good enough and is not justice for the victims or their families.
@Rochelle: I fully agree
@Conoroconnor: Have you never once been distracted while driving, despite best efforts to be safe?
You said ‘maybe read on his phone’ … I’d be interested to know if he was actually using his phone or not
@Conoroconnor: it was careless, not dangerous driving. We’ve all done that’s at some point. Everyone reading this comment has come close to getting killed or killing on the roads many many tines in their lives, saved by luck or a rapid reflex action and nothing more.
@Perlum Sprite: “We’ve all done it” thats why rhe sentences are so lax. Zero punishment because most of the jury can relate to speeding, phone use or being distracted. Nobody learns anything and the cycle continues
@Conoroconnor: the truck driver was legally on the road, this man was not.
@Inanimate Carbon Rod: Can you please explain to me how the colour of the license a person has in their wallet makes one bit of difference. ‘Fully qualified’ drivers can make mistakes too you know.
@Jim Cunningham: and with that thinking – we now know where the problem lies.
@David Gannon: yeah but if it was an Irish person the sentence would be more severe
A serious review of judicial sentencing is need in this county asap. There is an extreme disconnect between the judiciary and victims of crimes. Although this may have been an unforseen accident, perpetrators of unjust actions should never be able to walk free from court.
And now we have a judge deciding the value in €uros of a human life ?
Something badly wrong here.
Because hes not working class and most likely comes from a influent background and hes studying a typical middle class job he got away with it. It just goes to show that the judges view the working class with different perspectives. If He came from a council estate and did this the judge would throw the book at him. It just goes to show if your wealthy enough the judge dont own you. You own the judge.
@Alan Richard Scott: yeah that’s how it works alright
@Alan Richard Scott: rofl
@joe: laugh all you want but it is the truth.
@Alan Richard Scott: you are obviously as blind to court rulings as the judges that hand out these sentences. The underlying factor relating to judicial sentencing in this county is that the judicial system has become desensitized to the grief these cases inact on the Irish society. The person who perpetrated this death has been given a sentence and conviction but no life time served. Your statements show a drastic misconception on the type of convicts that actually serve incarceration sentences in this country. 6 months in jails and 2 years community service would be appropriate, along with never being let behind the wheel of a car again.
@Alan Richard Scott: here pal; I’m working class. I know enough people from “Working Class” backgrounds who get away with murder.
Be it literally or figuratively. How many times do you see someone in the paper or on this site; with 30 or 40 offences/Convictions getting away with a slap on the wrist because of their “Working Class” upbringing.
That “Working Class” lark is for the birds. The more money you make; or the wealth that you’ve accumulated doesn’t mean the guilty party gets away scott free.
People know he killed someone, his professional life is affected as he is a lawyer who broke the law, and he has to live with the fact that he took a life.
Out of curiosity; if you were in that blokes shoes; would you prefer his sentence or jail time?
What about all the other learner drivers going around on their own with no qualified driver in the car with them but hey this is Ireland no enforcement of many laws.
@Peter Murphy: the other learner drivers did not cause a death now did they?
@Alan Richard Scott: Not yet. AS someone who used to drive professionally and did a lot of mileage it is frightening to see the antics of some learner drivers. If they can drive around with impunity then why should I bother paying to renew my licence when it comes up?
@CBD Suppliers: not yet? Do you honestly think that just because someone has passed a 30 min driving test they are automatically regarded as a safe driver? This tragedy could have happened with an experienced full license but the type of license wouldn’t even be mentioned then.
@CBD Suppliers: because it’s the law
@Alan Richard Scott:
You mean like learner drivers not driving unaccompanied?
@jason roche: So you are saying we shouldn’t test people before letting them drive are you?
@Dave Harris: I didn’t say that at all, of course we should test people. I’d prefer to see more tests before people get behind a wheel but I think everyone can agree that’s it’s not realistic to have a full license driver accompanying learner drivers at all times. In this case if their had been a full license driver in the car would the outcome be any different? RIP to the deceased.
@jason roche: No everybody doesn’t agree it is not reasonable to expect a learner driver to be accompanied all times they are driving. You don’t have a licence to drive without a fully licenced person so you simply don’t drive. Yes the outcome would have been different because they wouldn’t be driving
Sentences are all over the place. I’ve seen similar circumstances and they had to serve time
With a law degree he must have known he was driving illegally, as did the judge.
@Hippocampus: The 20,000 fine tells me he has money the Judge took this fella bank account i to mind when sentencing. The Judge should have jailed him as doing otherwise sends out a wrong signal to other unaccompanied drivers and just because you do not see so many L plates stickers anymore does not mean everyone are gone road legal just unaccompanied drivers are sticking the N plate up instead.
@Alan Scott: why would a unaccompanied L plate put a N plate up instead of just leaving the plates off?
“Holds a master’s degree and training to become a solicitor”, this guy has chosen to discard all what he has been taught in the law school and decided to drive a car illegally, he should have been jailed for 10 years and then forced to re-do the masters as a punishment as he seems unable to understand the fundamentals
Is ireland letting them away with it?
Difficult case and I would hate to be the judge, defendant or widow.
@Perlum Sprite: it’s not that difficult. I feel sorry for the guy, but he was driving dangerously and killed someone who would be alive if not for his actions. I can only recall one incident where a cyclist was killed by a driver’s dangerous driving where a conviction was made, and that was an absolute scobe braking lights and trying to kill someone. There is absolutely no incentive to pay attention to cyclists and pedestrians, as if you kill one, it is only your own guilt that will affect your life, as families pick up the shares of their lives with their killers get on with theirs (with guilt, of course)
@Perlum Sprite: what is difficult about it? The driver was breaking the law driving unaccompanied and killed someone due to his inexperience behind a wheel.
It is mad that Ireland allows people to break the law in this regard and drive unaccompanied simply by passing a computer exam.
@Greg Daniel: I feel the man deserves a sentence fitting of the crime, not the pathetic one he got, however he may have had a full licence in Nigeria which is not recognised here, so may be an experienced driver, as I say it does not excuse driving alone on a learners permit.
Learner driver and law student. Driving alone and causing an accident with fatal consequences.
Given a suspended sentence, really? Really?
Justice in this country is just another episode of Father Ted.
UNBELIEVABLE.
Sentence is totally unacceptable. And sympathies to this man’s family. On a side note these food delivery company’s have a lot to answer for with how dangerous their drivers behave on the road. They often put other road users at risk. Constantly speeding and undercutting. I personally saw one hit a bus he survived. He blamed the driver of the bus. The driver said to him there were 12 cameras covering every direction on his vichele and he was satisfied that deliveroo driver was at fault. He was right and was cleared.
Francis Fitzgerald lol
Very tragic and sad but Prison is not the Answer for every accident or Crime !!!!
Killing someone with a car should be charged as murder, especially if it occurs due to dangerous driving. Lesser charges get longer sentences. No faith in the courts, or the Minister for Justice who has done nothing about lenient sentences.
Way to LEINENT he killed the poor man?!!!
L doesn’t = Learner Driver
Many returning Irish who held full licenses before leaving Ireland & now have a decades of intensive driving experience around the globe get stuck with an L plate after 364 days of legally driving around Ireland with their foreign or intl license
Kids who just passed their driving test are recognized by the RSA as needing 100s of hours of driving before being considered competent drivers
At least 71% of the drivers around Ireland wouldn’t have a hope of meeting the “standards” of the driving test if they had Harvey the invisible tester sitting next to them on their way to pick up the kids from school or on the morning commute
About 50% of “RSA” Fully trained L drivers fail the driving test around Dublin test centers! Why?
RSA motto. “More points for everyone”.
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