THE MAN accused of the manslaughter of Garda Robbie McCallion has been found not guilty.
Jamie McGrenaghan breathed a heavy sigh of relief as the jury at Letterkenny District Court in Co Donegal returned with a unanimous verdict.
Members of the late Garda McCallion’s family were clearly upset, including his father Bob, mother Nancy, sisters Noirin and Deirdre and girlfriend Marie O’Donnell. A number of the late Garda McCallion’s colleagues in the force were left visibly stunned by the verdict.
McGrenaghan (19), of Gortnathraw, Cashel, Kerrykeel, had previously pleaded guilty to dangerous driving causing the death of Garda McCallion (29) and also stealing a car. He will be sentenced on Friday next, February 11th.
The trial, which lasted almost three days, ended when the jury returned with a verdict after 2½ hours. Before sending the jury out to consider their verdict, Judge John O’Hagan had warned the 12-person jury that they could not change their minds once a decision was made.
He also said that, while it was tragic, they should not be carried away by the fact that the victim was a garda.
He told the jury that in coming to a verdict they should be sure it was the right thing to do.
“You cannot say later that ‘Oh my God what have I done’.
“There is tragedy on both sides and nobody can mend that. But you are asked to ask yourself if there was a high degree of negligence that led to manslaughter.
“Don’t be carried away by the fact that he was a garda. You must look at it in a cold and a calculated manner,” he said.
Immediately after the verdict was delivered, the court was told that just weeks before he hit Garda McCallion, McGrenaghan had been involved in a number of burglaries between February 26th and 27th to which he then pleaded guilty.
During the trial the court had heard how the accused struck Garda McCallion in the early hours of March 26th, 2009, after he and another man had stolen a car at Tara Court in Letterkenny, Co Donegal.
The garda, a talented footballer who played with his native Mayo, died in Beaumont Hospital in Dublin a few days later on April 7th.
McGrenaghan’s defence team had argued that he panicked on the night of the tragedy and was merely trying to escape.
Letterkenny Circuit Court heard how McGrenaghan and friend Cathal Dunleavy had been drinking in several pubs in the Fanad and Kerrykeel areas before driving to Letterkenny.
They went to see a car which was for sale at Tara Court but while there spotted another car, a white Toyota Corolla, which Dunleavy decided to steal.
The men returned later at 4am in McGrenaghan’s Peugeot car and took the Toyota Corolla car.
However, as they tried to leave the housing estate, they were met by three gardaí. The gardaí noticed the door of the Corolla car was damaged and went to block the road. McGrenaghan, who was behind the Corolla in his own car, immediately reversed back up the road and began revving is engine.
He then drove at the patrol car but veered to the left hitting the patrol car, the Corolla and sent Garda McCallion through the air and into a nearby garden. He tried to run away but was caught by Garda Shane Lavelle.
After being arrested McGrenaghan admitted he had run down Garda McCallion but said he did not mean it.