A MOTION brought to the table by Cllr. Jim Allen at a recent Borough Council meeting received strong and unanimous backing from all present.
Cllr. Allen called for the Minister of Defence to publish all reports concerning the death of Cadet David Jevens to ensure that his good name and reputation was preserved. He added that the family was calling for an independent investigation into the accident and called on this request to be immediately responded to.
Cadet David Jevens died on October 12, 2009, in Co Galway when the plane he was flying in crashed on a military training exercise.
Cllr. Danny Forde described Cadet Jevens as “a man who wanted to serve his country.” He pointed out that on the day he died, Cadet Jevens was the person who was least in control of the situation.
“He was the most junior person in training on that day. He couldn’t possibly have been at fault for what happened.”
Speaking to The Echo after the meeting, Donal Jevens said that the matter was ongoing at the moment and he could not comment on those developments. He explained that the family was requesting that the Court of Enquiry into the accident be completed to comply with Defence Force regulations and its own Terms of Reference.
He pointed out that evidence from the two-day inquest into his son’s death had not been submitted to that enquiry and this was one of the terms that had not been abided by.
“We are trying to get the record amended so that the Court of Enquiry is compliant. We have heard the cockpit recording but we were told that there were sections of it missing.
“We were told, from a legal point of view, that the gaps couldn’t be published and our request to hear it was denied, as well as a request to have a third party hear it who could then ease our concerns.”
He added that the family had made a civil claim for wrongful death which was not paid and the case was due before Galway Circuit Court in February. This case, he stressed, had no connection to the Court of Enquiry issue.
[Full story in this week’s Echo]