Gagandeep Kaur pleads guilty over Louth hit-and-run that seriously injured cyclist
A woman has pleaded guilty at Dundalk Circuit Court over a hit-and-run in County Louth that left cyclist Dr Sean Owens seriously injured.
The hearing also heard a victim impact statement from Dr Owens as sentencing got under way.
Gagandeep Kaur, 38, of Glenwood, Dundalk, admitted driving without due care and attention causing serious bodily harm, failing to stop and offer assistance, and attempting to pervert the course of justice.
The court heard the collision happened on the R132 at Dromiskin on the evening of 6 January 2025.
Dr Owens, a former GP, was cycling towards Dundalk when he was struck from behind by a car while on his way to a house call from Castlebellingham.
Garda Conor Hegarty told the court he found Dr Owens at the roadside at about 6.45pm with a large laceration to the right side of his head, and that his ear appeared to have been severed.
The court heard that Dr Owens was initially unconscious, later became alert at the scene, but his condition deteriorated after he was taken to hospital and he was transferred to Beaumont Hospital in Dublin.
A consultant neurosurgeon's statement described cervical spinal fractures that resulted in multiple strokes.
The case matters because it combines serious road injury with allegations of leaving the scene and misleading investigators.
The court heard that Kaur had become distracted while driving and checking on her young daughter, who was crying in the back seat.
Evidence before the court also described how the vehicle was identified after it was left at a crash repair garage.
Gardaí recovered the car two days later after the garage owner alerted them.
