The Clare Champion Clare news, sport, entertainment and local notes
ANIMALS enjoy more protection under the law than adult victims of domestic violence in Ireland, a prominent Clare politician has claimed. Senator Tony Mulcahy, who previously revealed his own childhood had been destroyed by domestic violence, has called on Justice Minister Frances Fitzgerald to introduce more stringent penalties against perpetrators of this crime. The Fine Gael Senator made the plea noting that someone who inflicts cruelty on a dog can be fined up to €250,000, or face up to five years imprisonment, while there is far less protection for someone over the age of 18, either male or female, who is a victim of domestic violence. A person convicted in the district court of causing harm can receive a maximum fine of €1,500 or up to 12 months in prison. “If we can introduce law to protect animals, we should be able to protect a man or woman that is being brutalised in their own home,” he said. “Friends of …
Read More »