TWO men appeared in court today where they pleaded guilty to separate crash charges which each claimed a life
First to appear in the dock at Antrim Crown Court was 28-year-old John O’Hagan from Maybrook Park in Derry.
Following extensive discussions between prosecution and defence lawyers, he pleaded guilty to causing the death of Loreta Douglas and grievous bodily injury to Eoin Cumming and Emma Doherty by driving carelessly on the A6 Glenshane Road, Dungiven on November 23 2016.
A former nun from Derry, 64-year-old Loreto Douglas had been travelling to a funeral in Newtownards when she was injured in a three-vehicle collision.
It is believed her car was initially involved in a minor collision with a van close to the Ponderosa bar, before a second collision took place involving another van.
Ms Douglas, who was former member of the Sisters of Mercy Order in Derry and who was a founding member of family support charity Lifestart Foundation where she had worked since 1986, was airlifted to hospital where she later died.
A short time later, 25-year-old Martin Jamison entered the same dock and he pleaded guilty to causing the death of Dylan O’Kane and grievous bodily injury to Richard McMullan by driving dangerously on the Coolkeeran Road in Armoy on 7 May 2017.
Jamison, from Turnarobert Park in Armoy, also entered guilty pleas to driving with excess alcohol and driving while unfit “through drunk or drugs” on the same date.
Dylan O'Kane was 21 and from Armoy when he died in the three vehicle crash on Coolkeeran Road, Armoy at approximately 10pm.
The former Ballycastle High School pupil was the front seat passenger in a VW Passat involved in a collision with a VW Jetta and a Hyundai car.
In relation to both cases, Judge Patricia Smyth adjourned passing sentence until May 7 by which stage she will have received submissions from prosecution and defence lawyers along with pre-sentence and victim impact reports in each case.