Tag Archives: Clare District Courts

A judge has described the circumstances in which a west Clare farmer lost his life in a farm accident as ‘horrific’. At Kilrush District Court, Judge Mary Larkin made her comment after hearing an outline of the State case concerning Damien Carmody’s death at Doonaha, Kilkee on January 22 2021. One of the two men being prosecuted concerning alleged Health and Safety breaches arising from the farm accident is farmer, John Roche of Doonaha Kilkee. Judge Larkin commented: “These are all horrific circumstances. This was a man who was his neighbour and his friend.” Mr Carmody had only got married to wife, Elaine 12 months prior to the fatal incident. In court on Tuesday, State Solicitor for Clare, Aisling Casey said that the case against Mr Roche’s co-accused, Christopher Keane of Bella, Kilkee, is to be heard in the circuit court and a Book of Evidence is to be prepared for service in June. After hearing an outline of the …

A DRIVER who hit a speed of 200km/h on a motorway in Clare could have caused “devastation and death,” a judge has warned. Judge Mary Larkin was speaking at Ennis District Court where she imposed a two year driving ban on Frankie Mongan (25). Mongan, with an address at Thornfield Drive, Lisnamult, Co Roscomon, was before the court on a charge of dangerous driving but was convicted of careless driving after the State accepted his plea to the lesser charge. In evidence, garda Cyril Page said he and a colleague were operating a speed checkpoint at the M18, Carrigoran near Newmarket-on-Fergus on July 5, 2021. The garda said that at 7.35pm he detected a car travelling at 174km/h in a 120km/h zone. The court heard gardai pursued and the car driven by Mongan hit a speed on 200km/h. The pursuit came to an end when Mongan pulled in, the court heard. Judge Mary Larkin said, “I can’t imagine getting my …

AN unemployed Ennis man who gardaí say paid for a €43,000 SUV in €50 notes has failed in a bid to have the vehicle returned, writes Ronan Judge. At Ennis District Court, Judge Mary Larkin refused the application brought by Ned Doherty (30), with an address at St Michael’s, Ballymaley, Ennis. The court heard the Toyota Hilux SUV was seized by gardaí in March as part of a wider garda operation. Doherty brought an application under the Police Property Act, seeking the return of the jeep. The applicant’s solicitor, Daragh Hassett, said that this is his client’s second such application since the seizure of the jeep. Mr Hassett said his client instructs that not many items were taken by gardaí during the March search and that the jeep was taken as gardaí left, “almost out of frustration”. The solicitor said the court was told during the first application, that the investigation was at an advanced stage and this is not …

A COUNTY Clare farmer has told of his distress after losing 14 of his animals in a ‘sheep kill’ last year, writes Gordon Deegan. At Killaloe District Court, farmer, Martin Cooke said of the shocking find “I wouldn’t wish it on anyone”. After arriving on February 16 2020 on his lands adjacent to a canal bank at Clonlara, he couldn’t see any of his sheep but did see two dogs nearby. Mr Cooke said that there were around 50 sheep in the flock and after searching, six or seven dead sheep had to be fished out of the canal. He had earlier spotted two dead sheep floating down the river adjacent to his land-holding. Mr Cooke told the court that 13 sheep were found dead from the sheep kill and another had to be put down afterwards to bring the death toll to 14. The sheep kill, he estimated, had cost him around €2,000. In the case, Judge Mary Larkin …

COUNTERFEIT viagra tablets estimated to be worth €65,000, posted to an address in Ennistymon were ultimately destined for a sex shop in Lithuania, a court has heard. Ennis District Court heard that 13,160 tablets, falsely branded Pfizer viagra, were intercepted by customs officers at the DHL facility in Shannon on April 17, 2018. Alan Smullen, enforcement officer with the Health Products Regulatory Authority (HPRA), told the court the package was addressed to an address at Bow Lane Ennistymon. The court heard the address was searched under warrant and the man living there, Mindaugas Maksimavicius (41), made certain admissions under caution. Mr Smullen said Maksimavicius said that he was expecting a package from China and he was to forward the package to a friend in Lithuania. In a second interview under caution, Maksimavicius, told officers that his friend in Lithuania contacted him a number of months previously via Facebook. The court heard the friend wanted Maksimavicius to accept a package because …

A 26-YEAR-OLD man has appeared in court charged with directing the activities of a criminal organisation in Clare, writes Ronan Judge. Tony McInerney, a father of two with a former address at Glenina, Gort Road, Ennis, and originally from Dublin, allegedly controlled supervised, instructed, guided or requested with respect to the carrying on of activities for the criminal organisation. Two other men, Conor Gilligan (29), with an address at Shallee Drive, Cloughleigh, Ennis, and Caoibhlen McMahon (24), with an address at Dun Aile, O’Callaghan’s Mills were also before the court this Wednesday on related charges. McInerney is accused of directing the activities of the criminal organisation within the State on dates between August 1, 2018 and August 24, 2018. Is is understood this is the first time a charge of this nature – which is contrary to section 71 of the Criminal Justice Act 2006, as amended, – has been brought before the courts in Clare. The charge was one …

THREE men are due to appear before Ennis District Court this morning, in connection with directing and participating or contributing to the activities of a criminal organisation in County Clare. The arrests were made following an investigation into organised crime in County Clare, which began in 2018. All three men are in their 20s. One man has been charged in connection with directing an organised crime group, while the two others have been charged with participating in, or contributing to the activities of a criminal organisation. They will appear before Ennis District Court this morning, at 10.30am.

A MILLIONAIRE Clare farmer has escaped a speeding conviction after disputing a garda’s “geography” of the area where he was stopped, writes Ronan Judge. At Ennis District Court last week, Judge Mary Larkin told John Joseph McCabe (84) that she was giving him the benefit of the doubt and striking out the speeding summons against him. Mr McCabe, a retired farmer with an address at Skehanagh, Clarecastle, denied the allegation that he was driving in excess of the speeding limit at Ennis Road, Clare Commons, on August 7, 2020. In evidence, Garda Darren Lynch said he recorded a Toyota Hilux driven by McCabe, allegedly at a speed of 73km in a 50km zone. The court heard a fixed charge penalty notice was issued and went unpaid. McCabe sold 48 acres of land near Clarecastle in the mid-2000s in a multi million euro deal that was the largest in Clare during the Celtic Tiger era. He is also a former local …