Pair jailed for dangerous driving causing death of two teenagers
The drivers of two cars convicted by a jury of dangerous driving causing the death of two teenagers were jailed today – one for six years, the other for four.
At Cork Circuit Criminal Court this afternoon, James Simms (aged 28), of no fixed address, was jailed for four years while Philip Murphy (aged 41) of Killala Gardens, Knocknaheeny, Cork, was jailed for six.
Murphy and Simms were both convicted last Thursday of dangerous driving on Friday May 14 on Harbour View Road causing the death of CJ Dolan, 16, and Derry O’Callaghan, 19.
Judge Patrick J. Moran said: “This was horrific, appalling, shocking type of driving on this particular night.
“James Simms, you took this turn (at Harbour View Road) at considerable speed and were rear-ended in the process by the car driven by Philip Murphy. As a result of that, both cars left the road. The cars collided with the wall. The Mondeo (driven by Simms) was spun around facing the direction from which it travelled. The Volkswagen (driven by Murphy) was beside it, both cars extremely damaged.”
The judge extended the sympathy of the court to the families of the deceased.
He explained that he differentiated on sentences because of the additional aggravating factor that Murphy had driven 2.6kms before the fatal accident with the limited vision afforded by a smashed windscreen.
He also took into consideration the mitigating factor in Simms’s case that he had the disability of cerebral palsy.
Both men had extensive previous convictions, including many for serious offences under the Road Traffic Act.
