The Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) is to appeal over the severity of a sentence imposed on a man who pleaded guilty to dangerous driving causing death, the family of the student killed in the crash has said.
Joe Drennan was in his final year of a journalism degree at the University of Limerick when he was struck by a car and killed in October 2023.
The 21-year-old, from Co Laois, was waiting for a bus near the university at the time.
The driver of the car, Kieran Fogarty, now 21, of Ballinacurra Weston in Limerick, pleaded guilty to dangerous driving causing death.
His sentence was to run concurrently with a separate firearm sentence he had received.
The Drennan family believes this decision means Fogarty would not serve an hour in prison specifically related to the death of the promising journalism student.
They had urged the DPP to appeal over the severity of the sentence, asking for it to instead be run consecutively.
On Wednesday, Mr Drennan’s sister Sarah said in a social media post that the DPP has decided to appeal over the decision.
Separately, the Drennan family has called for consecutive sentencing as standard in cases of multiple serious offences where there has been a loss of life.
This would be likely to require a change of legislation which, even if enacted, could not retroactively apply to Fogarty.
However, the family says such a change would benefit the relatives of potential future victims in similar situations.
The call has been supported by Sinn Fein.
(left to right) Sinn Fein TD Matt Carthy, Sinn Fein leader Mary Lou McDonald, Sarah Drennan and Marguerite Drennan outside Leinster House (Cillian Sherlock/PA)
On Tuesday, Mr Drennan’s sister Sarah told reporters that her family had suffered injustice in the initial sentencing.
She said: “Joe was the most hard-working boy ever known, he was so talented, working as a journalist in his fourth year of college, like he had so much ahead of him.
“He was so determined in everything he pursued and beyond that he just had a heart of gold.
“He was funny, the person I turned to for everything – he was an amazing boy.”
Ms Drennan added: “The law needs to change.
“Concurrent sentencing can’t happen when a death is involved because it just forgets victims and their families.
“We need to change the law and really, hopefully this does get changed and ensures that victims get their justice and holds criminals to real accountability, because we can’t accept a system that prioritises convenience over accountability.”
An online petition in support of the Drennans’ call for reform of consecutive sentencing laws has received more than 11,500 signatures within a week.