Gardaí were visibly present at the funeral mass of Joe Carthy, one of five teenagers who died in a wrong-way crash on the M9 motorway last weekend. The service took place on Friday morning in Athy, Co Kildare, with the Irish police service noticeably present in the town due to public outrage over the crash circumstances and potential disorder concerns.
Joe Carthy was killed when the car he was in was driven the wrong way down the M9, resulting in a head-on collision with another vehicle. He died alongside Jack Kennedy, Alex McCarthy, Jeremy O'Brien and Kamil Pustkowski. A child and three women from the same family, who were in the other car, are currently receiving treatment for serious injuries in hospital.
Funeral procession and police presence
The coffin arrived at St. Michael the Archangel Church on a white horse-drawn carriage. Mourners, wearing white T-shirts featuring an image of the boy, followed the coffin into the church while others held up framed photographs. Outside the service, a screen showcased photographs and videos as music filled the air. A blue carpet guided mourners to the church steps, with white flowers adorning the entrance.
An Garda Síochána set up checkpoints on the road into town, and officers were also stationed around the church area. The priest extended "sincere sympathy to Joe's family", adding: "We gather with sorrow in our hearts."
Further funerals and vigil planned
A funeral mass for Alex is set to be held at Holy Family Church, Askea, Carlow, on Friday afternoon. Meanwhile, in Carlow on Friday evening, a vigil will take place in memory of three sisters – Ella Hendricken and Niamh and Alma Kinsella – as well as a young lad who were travelling in the other vehicle involved in the accident.
By Friday morning, a fundraiser established for the affected family had amassed over 640,000 euro. Earlier in the week, Tusla, Ireland's child and family agency, confirmed that one of the deceased teenagers was under its care, while two other lads were "known" to the agency. Tusla has pledged to share information with the independent National Review Panel investigating deaths or serious incidents involving children known to Tusla or in State care.
Political and regulatory responses
The crash has reignited discussions about dangerous driving enforcement, social media content regulation, and the provision of State care to children. In the aftermath, both Government and opposition politicians have lambasted social media companies for their failure to limit or promptly remove content depicting dangerous driving.
TikTok declined a public invitation to appear before a parliamentary committee examining online videos of dangerous driving, instead proposing a private briefing for lawmakers. The social media behemoth had been invited to attend the Oireachtas Media Committee on September 23 to discuss its handling of content that "glorifies illegal activity", but has chosen to decline the opportunity.
Irish media regulator Coimisiún na Meán has also requested a "full account" of how TikTok is handling reports of illegal or harmful content on its platform, with the authority stating it remains in "close contact" with An Garda Síochána. TikTok claimed it would not be "possible" to attend the committee given ongoing investigations into the matter by gardaí and the regulator. The platform also argued it would not be "appropriate" for it to be the only video-sharing company summoned before the committee when comparable content features on other social media platforms.
The firm says it has deleted all the reported content and suspended accounts that breach its policies against criminal behaviour. It also stated it eliminates content that celebrates violence and encourages crime that could endanger others, while restricting the circulation of material that promotes unsafe behaviour including dangerous driving. Meta, which runs Instagram and Facebook, maintains policies to prevent users under 18 from viewing imagery showing real-life hazardous driving likely to cause injury, alongside a ban on content promoting criminal or harmful activities such as high-risk viral challenges. Snap has also been approached for comment.
Minister's pledge and opposition criticism
Irish Justice Minister Jim O'Callaghan pledged to supply An Garda Síochána with "whatever resources they require" to tackle dangerous driving following the crash – including implementing pursuit-specific training for the first time. He stated that Garda Commissioner Justin Kelly will commence the training this year.
A decision was made to instruct gardaí not to chase the BMW, which was being driven by teenagers in the wrong direction on the motorway. Local gardaí reported that it had previously failed to stop for police. Mr O'Callaghan is also considering the introduction of a specific offence for intentionally driving against the flow of traffic on a motorway.
However, opposition politicians argue that the issues with policing dangerous driving originate from problems surrounding recruitment and retention. Sinn Féin justice spokesman Matt Carthy claimed that a "failure to address" Garda numbers is "fuelling a community safety crisis" across the State. He stated: "There is a clear shortage of community gardaí and interventions needed to prevent crime before it occurs."
