Grieving parents call for new penalties for dangerous driving that causes death of unborn child

Fine Gael TDs have proposed new legislation that would amend the law to make the loss of a pregnancy due to careless driving a punishable offence

Saoirse Aylward and Colleen Langan at Leinster House on Tuesday. Picture: Stephen Collins/Collins

Government TDs have called for the introduction of new penalties for dangerous driving that causes the death of unborn children.

The new law would be named Jax’s Law, in memory of Wexford woman Saoirse Aylward’s son Jax, who died following a road traffic accident in January 2024.

In February, Yurii Dudek, 31, with an address listed in Chernivtsi, Ukraine, was sentenced to six months in prison for careless driving.

Ms Aylward, who was 31 weeks' pregnant at the time, had an emergency C-section after being brought by ambulance to Wexford General Hospital. When she woke up, she was told her son Jax was stillborn.

Speaking outside Leinster House, Ms Aylward said her child was not recognised during the legal process and no charges could be brought against Dudek for his death due to gaps in legislation.

Fine Gael TDs Barry Ward and Emer Currie have now proposed new legislation that would amend the law to make the loss of a pregnancy due to careless driving a punishable offence. 

The proposed penalty would be up to two years' imprisonment or fines of up to €10,000 for careless driving, and 10 years imprisonment or a €20,000 fine for dangerous driving.

Ms Aylward said she could “not put into words” how much it would mean to have the legislation passed and named in honour of her son, Jax.

“I always felt like he was a special boy. There was meaning to his life,” she said.

“I think it's very clear what that was. Hopefully, this can help other grieving families not go through the pain I went through of having to fight for Jax’s loss to be recognised.

You're already grieving. You're already traumatised. You don't need that compounded by having to argue for your child to be recognised.

Ms Aylward said while gardaí had initially recommended a charge for Jax’s death, they were informed by the Director of Public Prosecutions there was no law.

She added: “Jax was a four-pound baby. He had to have a post-mortem. I had to bury him. My 11-year-old daughter visits him at a graveside.

“But yet, the law says that he doesn't exist.”

Colleen Langan’s aunt, Róisín Connolly, died in a road traffic collision in 2010 at the Carrickmacross bypass. She was five months' pregnant with baby Catherine, who was also never recognised.

Ms Langan said the gap in legislation means that families have to relive their grief.

“It's such an important thing for us to fight for,” she said.

“There is no recognition, there is no acknowledgement of an unborn child. So even though it is difficult, it is so important to get this in place and get the bill in place and make sure that no other family has to go through [a] similar [situation].”

Ms Aylward and Ms Langan have also asked the Road Safety Authority to add a category in its road death statistics for unborn babies.

Mr Ward said the legislation would define an unborn child as a pregnancy lost at at least 23 weeks duration, or when the baby weighed at least 400 grams. This is the definition provided in the Civil Registrations Act 2024.

He said the bill had been provided to junior transport minister Sean Canney and he was “not opposed to it in principle”.