UCC seminar examines systemic causes of youth offending after M9 tragedy

University College Cork hosted a seminar on youth justice in response to the fatal M9 motorway crash that claimed five teenagers’ lives.

The tragedy, which occurred in August when the teenagers were driving on the wrong side of the road and collided with a family travelling to an airport, sparked public sympathy for the injured family and vilification of the young drivers, said Katharina Swirak, a UCC sociology and criminology researcher who organised the event.

Swirak highlighted the need to look beyond individual behaviour and consider systemic harms created by policy makers, politicians and society, which can place young people in risky situations. She noted that the current Youth Justice Strategy is due to expire next year and urged that a new, progressive strategy focus on diversion and prevention rather than punitive measures.

Voices on prevention and systemic factors

Reformed offender Robert Cullen, a Cork resident and PhD candidate at UCC, echoed the call for a preventative approach, stressing the importance of recognising broader social influences on youth crime. Cullen, who previously served time for armed robbery, described how feminist literature helped him understand the role of patriarchal expectations in shaping harmful masculine norms.

In a recent Oireachtas committee hearing, TikTok’s global head of policy in trust and safety, Zachary Hecht, reported that the platform had identified 1,600 Irish videos depicting risky driving or vehicle theft since the crash, underscoring the digital dimension of the issue.

Source: Irish Examiner. Photo: Sonny Vermeer / Pexels.