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Calls made for stricter controls on renewal of driving licenses

Friday, 6 October 2017 19:27

It comes following the death of six-year-old boy who was killed in a hit-and-run in Cork

The parents of Luke O'Donovan say it gives them comfort that their son saved four people's lives through organ donation.

He lost his life outside his home in Ballymacoda and at an inquest into his death yesterday the court heard that the driver of the car vowed never to drive again after being given a two-year suspended jail sentence and a 10-year driving ban.

The driver, 52-year-old Edmond Walsh, was issued with a renewed driving license in 2010 without having to resit a driving test. That's despite having suffered two serious head injuries after falls from heights which impaired his cognitive function as well as affecting his movement in his right hand.

Currently a driver, their family or their medical practitioner has to inform the National Driving Licence Service if they have suffered any impairment but there is no requirement on them to have to re-sit their driving test to assess their fitness to drive.

The family have called for stricter controls on laws governing the renewal of driving licenses.

Luke's mother Josephine told the Neil Prendeville Show on Cork's RedFM about the people that benefited from his organ donation.

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