Schoolgirl gets €2.95m after being knocked down
Ashleigh Carroll with her grandparents at Dublin's High Court
At a glance
Dublin schoolgirl, 14, awarded €3m (£2.5m) after being knocked down
The teenager was crossing at a pedestrian crossing when incident happened in October 2016, RTÉ reports
The High Court in Dublin heard that Ashleigh Carroll had no memory of what happened, and was alone at the time.
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Dublin schoolgirl gets €2.95m after being knocked down by doctor
A Dublin schoolgirl who suffered a severe brain injury after she was knocked down by a speeding doctor has been awarded almost €3m (£2.5m).
Ashleigh Carroll, who was 14-years-old at the time, was hit at a pedestrian crossing in Coolock on 20 October, 2016, RTÉ reports.
The court heard Dr Shereen El Mashad gave an "utterly dishonest account", blaming Ashleigh for the accident.
Ashleigh had no memory of what happened, and was alone at the time.
The High Court was told Dr El Mashad was on her way to work at Dublin's Beaumont Hospital.
Senior counsel Richard Keane said it was only after Ashleigh's solicitor discovered the doctor had left the country and an international arrest warrant was issued, that liability was admitted - more than four years after the accident.
Until then, he said it had seemed Ashleigh would get no compensation for her injuries.
The court was told Ashleigh's solicitor, Keira O'Reilly, discovered two witnesses who were at the pedestrian crossing and told gardaí (Irish police) they saw the car driven by the doctor come at "tremendous speed along the bus lane and through the red light".
Until then, he said it had seemed Ashleigh would get no compensation for her injuries.
He said the "utterly dishonest" claim Ashleigh was entirely responsible for the accident had caused great distress to her and her mother, Louise.
He told the court Ashleigh was thrown violently into the air, and struck her head on the ground, causing a significant head injury.
The judge approved a €2.95m (£2.45m) settlement.
Speaking outside the court on the family's behalf, Ms O'Reilly said the accident had changed their lives forever.
She said: "Ashleigh had suffered catastrophic injuries and had been blamed for causing them herself for four years.
This was like a dark cloud hanging over them when they were already trying to deal with the aftermath of the accident."
Ms O'Reilly said Ashleigh was a high achieving student who had aspirations to go to Harvard and become president of Ireland when the accident happened, but these dreams had been cut short.
She said Ashleigh was a bright, witty, determined and resilient young woman and the family were satisfied by the outcome.