Posted: December 22nd, 2021
A €2.85m personal injury compensation settlement has been approved for a 30-year-old father-of-two who sustained life-changing injuries after a man crashed a van into him on purpose.
The man in question, Stephen Roche, spent 16 days in a coma and sustained significant injuries following the incident that occurred on the Main Street at Edgeworthstown, Co Longford in 2017. According to information provided in court, a driver circled Mr Roche once and then, during the second circle, collided with him and knocked him to the ground.
Legally representing Mr Roche in court, Sara Moorhead SC described the tragic course of events to Justice Paul Coffey. She informed him that, prior to the accident occurring, an altercation had taken place between her client and the driver of the van. She said that, during June 2020, the defendant, 29-year-old Aaron Cassidy with an address at Cranleymore, Edgeworthstown, Co Longford was convicted of dangerous driving that inflicted serious bodily harm to Mr Roche on September 10, 2017. a conviction that came with a prison sentence of six years, with the final 12 months suspended, and a disqualification from driving for a period of ten years.
An appeal against this sentence was dismissed by the Court of Appeal. During the appeal hearing it was found that Mr Cassidy’s sentence was “entirely correct to place the offence near the highest end of the spectrum” after being made aware of the life-changing injuries suffered by Mr Roche.
Through his sister Tracey Golden, Mr Roche took a legal action against the MIBI and Aaron Cassidy due to the injuries he sustained in the road traffic incident. The legal action alleged Mr Roche was walking along the Main Street at Edgeworthstown when suddenly and without warning, crashed into the van driven by the defendant. Additionally, it was alleged that the van was being driven at too great a speed in all the circumstances, without due care and attention and in a dangerous fashion. It was also claimed that the driver of the van did not manage the van at an appropriate speed or with appropriate care and caution.
The Judge was informed that the van driver showed no regard for Mr Roche’s safety.
Following the collision, Mr Roche was taken to Mullingar General Hospital for emergency treatment before being later moved to Beaumont Hospital, Dublin. Since the incident Mr Roche experiences ongoing health problems including dizziness, blurred vision as well as difficulties with reading and writing and he will be on anti-epilepsy medicine for the remainder of his life.
The compensation settlement, Justice Paul Coffey was informed, would be provided towards a lot of Mr Roche’s treatment needs going forward. As Mr Cassidy was uninsured at the time of the incident the settlement was made with the Motor Insurers Bureau of Ireland (MIBI), which compensates victims of uninsured or untraced drivers.
Categories: Pedestrians in Accidents
