A man who was involved in a road collision with an elderly woman over a year ago in Waterford was recently handed a court fine.
Jan Kurucz (58) made no appearance at a sitting of Waterford District Court in February before Judge Catherine Ryan. He was charged with careless driving, arising from an incident that occurred in November 2024.
The court was firstly told that although the accused was contacted about his court appearance, he has since moved to Slovakia, and has no intention of returning to Ireland. It was outlined that on 13 November 2024, Gardaí were called to Kilcohan Park housing estate in Waterford, following reports of a collision between a car and a pedestrian.
The court heard that the pedestrian was an elderly woman who was crossing the road at the time when the car collided with her. The woman was treated at University Hospital Waterford (UHW), for injuries to her hips and a bump to the back of her head. Although she received the all-clear from scans at UHW, it was stated that she has struggled with headaches since the incident.
Following the incident, the accused was given a voluntary caution by Gardaí, and his vehicle was seized for inspection, where nothing untoward was discovered. Although the accused did not appear in court, his account of that day was read out. It was stated that he was driving to his girlfriend’s house, and before turning right into the housing estate, he had let an oncoming vehicle pass. He noticed the woman on the footpath and then suddenly felt something hit his car.
The court was also told that the accused was driving at a low speed at the time, had not been under the influence of drink or drugs, was wearing a seatbelt, and weather conditions on the day were clear. It is understood that he has four previous convictions that are all related to road traffic matters.
Judge Ryan noted the absence of the defendant and said that she accepted the evidence that was given. The Judge said that the incident meets the threshold for a charge of careless driving and that thankfully, there were no serious injuries arising from it. Considering all of these factors, Judge Ryan said that the court found the facts to be proven.
Acting for the defendant, solicitor Ken Cunningham said it was an ‘aggravating’ factor that his client was not present, that he had been living in Ireland for 13 years, but moved back to Slovakia after his father passed away. Mr Cunningham added that the incident had a “low level impact”, that the accused’s vehicle was in good mechanical condition and reiterated the fact that no long-term injuries had arisen from it.
Judge Ryan decided not to hand the accused a disqualification from driving, given the fact that he has moved out of Ireland. She handed down a €1,000 fine for the matter, and made an order for him to be notified of this.
Funded by the Court Reporting Scheme
Robyn Power
