Man jailed after crash caused pregnant woman to lose her unborn baby
Saoirse Aylward, with her stillborn son Jax whom she lost as a result of the crash in 2024. She has called for a change in the law, saying: Jax's Law proposes that babies who die as a result of fatal road collisions during pregnancy are recognised in their own right within the justice system'.
A 31-year-old Ukrainian man has been sentenced to six months in prison arising out of the careless driving of a van that led to the death of an unborn baby.
Yurii Dudek, with an address listed in Chernivtsi, Ukraine, was handed down the sentence by Judge Cormac Quinn after pleading guilty at Wexford Circuit Criminal Court.
The accident occurred on the main Wexford/Rosslare road on January 27, 2024.
The accused was in Ireland at the time collecting medical supplies and humanitarian aid for the Ukrainian army and people impacted by the war in his home country.
Garda John O'Flynn gave evidence that the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter van was being driven by the accused at the time and had rear-ended another vehicle that had stopped to make a right turn into the driveway of a house directly off the N25.
The impacted vehicle was then pushed into oncoming traffic, hitting the car in which Saoirse Aylward and her partner Nathan Ferguson-Murphy were travelling.
The court heard that Ms Aylward, who was 31 weeks pregnant at the time, had to have an emergency C-Section after being brought by ambulance to Wexford General Hospital. When she woke up she was told that her son Jax was stillborn.
Judge Quinn said the victim impact statements delivered were the most "compelling, distressing and moving statements that one could hear".
The judge said there were several mitigating factors in this case, including the accused's plea of guilty and the fact that Dudek had no previous convictions in Ireland or Ukraine.
Judge Quinn also said that Dudek was distraught following the incident and was genuinely remorseful.
However, he set a headline sentence of nine months and sentenced Dudek to six months in prison.
Judge Quinn said he would credit Dudek for any time already spent in custody, and would not be suspending his drivers licence as he used this for his volunteering work in aid of Ukraine.
Saoirse Aylward has now launched a campaign for legislative reform to address what she has described as a 'gap' in the law.
In a statement issued following the sentencing, Ms Aylward said: "Jax's Law proposes that babies who die as a result of fatal road collisions during pregnancy are recognised in their own right within the justice system.
"I have been given a life sentence and will live with the consequences of someone's actions that night for the rest of my life.
'My hope is that some good can come from this, and that no other mother, no other grieving family, will experience the additional pain of discovering that their child's life is not formally recognised within our justice system."
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