Teen’s mother says she begged judge to jail him weeks before fatal wrong-way crash

Following a devastating collision that killed five young men, one grieving mother has revealed that she pleaded with a judge to put her son behind bars only weeks before he died.

The tragedy occurred on August 16. Those who died were 17-year-old Kamil Pustkowski; Jack Kennedy, also 17; Jeremy O’Brien, who was 18; 15-year-old Joe Carthy; and Alex McCarthy, 16. Their vehicle was being driven against traffic on Ireland’s M9 motorway in County Kildare when it struck another car head-on.

The second vehicle carried sisters Niamh and Alma Kinsella, Ella Hendricken, and Alma’s 7-year-old son, Yemi. All suffered serious injuries, and they remain in the hospital as they recover.

Kamil’s mother, Emilia Pustkowska, has spoken publicly about her 17-year-old son, saying he had been “lost.” She also defended him against suggestions that he led the group of friends.

In an interview with the Irish Mail, Pustkowska insisted that Kamil could not have been their leader because he was unable to guide even himself. She repeated that her son was lost, rather than someone who directed the others.

She says everything quickly spiraled.

According to Pustkowska, the difficulties with Kamil’s conduct had emerged only during the previous few months. She said January 2025 was the first time anyone contacted her regarding possible driving offenses involving him, but from that point the entire situation rapidly grew worse.

His mother accompanied him to court repeatedly. She said she attended every proceeding—traveling to Limerick three times and Dublin five times. The appearances were not prompted by new incidents, she explained; the same cases were continually postponed.

Kamil admitted guilt in connection with some offenses, yet he was not placed in custody. Reports say two of the cases were adjourned during the previous month.

Pustkowska emphasized that her son did not deny what he had done. When accused, she said, he acknowledged it and pleaded guilty.

The Irish Mail reported that she directly implored the judge to send Kamil to prison. She told the court that she could no longer manage him at home. For two years, she said, she had felt like a prisoner herself because she was forced to keep everything locked away.

She said no one paid attention to her warnings. Pustkowska asked whether anyone could imagine a mother wanting her own child imprisoned, but argued that when a situation is visibly deteriorating, a different answer must be found.

In her view, time in custody might at least have allowed Kamil to mature. She acknowledged that another person might then have occupied his seat in the car, which would not have made the outcome any less terrible. Still, she said, that person would not have been Kamil.

Pustkowska also described the anger directed at her since the collision. She felt unable even to offer an apology to the injured family because she feared the public would tear her apart.

She wishes her son had never entered that car.

Reports state that the occupants of the other vehicle were heading toward the airport. They planned to travel to the United Kingdom for a wedding when the crash took place.

Margaret Berry, the mother of Jeremy O’Brien, expressed the same painful regret in a statement. She said she wished her son had never climbed into the vehicle and extended her sympathy to the badly injured family.

Berry said that if she could meet them, she would apologize directly. She has prayed for them and hopes deeply that they are eventually able to heal.

She added that the catastrophe should never have occurred. Berry said she is not proud of what happened and does not defend the young men’s actions, repeating her wish that Jeremy had stayed out of the car.

Berry also voiced hope that, someday, the family members still hospitalized might be able to find some form of forgiveness. She said she would continue praying for them.

According to Berry, her son and the other boys did not begin that night intending to harm anyone. Even so, she said her heart will forever ache for every person caught in this nightmare.