Two young mothers in stolen car at time of crash, court hears

Two young mothers who voluntarily got into a stolen car which was later involved in a high speed garda chase resulting in the death of a 16-year-old passenger have been remanded on bail pending sentence.

The car clipped another vehicle on the inside lane of the M50 motorway, lost control and crossed two lanes of traffic before it became airborne and crashed into a lamppost fatally injuring back-seat passenger Darragh Carroll, of Ballyogan Vale, Carrickmines.

Leah Larkin (aged 20), and Carolyn Power (aged19), both admitted to gardaí that they knew the car had been stolen when they got into it. They claimed they had asked the driver to slow down and let them out as he sped along the motorway at 100 mph, twice the legal limit.

Both women who have addresses in Benburb Street, Dublin 7, with Power having a second address at Oldcourt Avenue, Bray, Co Wicklow, pleaded guilty to allowing themselves to be carried in a stolen car on January 18, 2007.

Neither Larkin nor Power were seriously injured in the collision, nor was the driver of the car who is yet to come before the courts.

Power had no previous convictions and gave birth to her first baby nine days ago. Larkin, who is expecting her second child, has one previous conviction for handling stolen property.

Judge Katherine Delahunt adjourned both cases to allow for Power to be psychologically assessed and for the preparation of a probation report for both.

Garda Catriona Keyes told Mr Maurice Coffey BL, prosecuting, that the driver of the car had been stopped earlier that night when gardaí saw him driving a Vauxhall Corsa. Both Power and Larkin were in the vehicle at the time and it was seized by gardai.

Some time later gardaí saw the driver leaving the Wyattville Estate, Ballybrack, Co Dublin, at speed in a different vehicle. He ignored their request to pull the car over and drove in the direction of the patrol vehicle before mounting a grass verge and speeding towards the N11 dual carriageway.

Gda Keyes said the driver then performed a U-turn before it headed towards the M50 motorway breaking three sets of red lights and taking the exit for the M50 northbound. Gardaí called for assistance and positioned themselves along the motorway to warn other motorists of "the advancing danger".

The driver narrowly missed two garda patrol cars while it was overtaking them at speeds of 100 mph in a 50 mph zone and it was noted he nearly lost control of the vehicle a number of times. Moments later the car collided with the lamppost leading to the death of Mr Carroll.

Both the driver of the car and Power had to be cut from the wreckage and Mr Carroll was taken to Beaumont Hospital where he died the next day.

Gda Keyes said that Mr Carroll was an acquaintance of both Power and Larkin rather than a close friend. The car had been reported as stolen from the Wyattwille Estate earlier that day.

She agreed with Mr James Dwyer BL, defending Larkin, that the driver of the car, who earlier had a warrant issued for his arrest, was known to gardaí.

Gda Keyes accepted that Larkin told gardaí during interview that she asked the driver to stop the car and let her out and said to him "you can take the chase".

She also accepted that Larkin later asked him to slow down and had tried to get out of the car but he had locked the doors .