Tag Archives: Judge Gerald Keys

A JUDGE has rejected a proposal that a sex offender not be present for his sentencing hearing and view proceedings via FaceTime, Zoom or some other ‘virtual’ means from his current home in France. At Ennis Circuit Court on today (Thursday), Judge Gerald Keys stated that it would be “grossly unfair” to the man’s victim if he wasn’t present for the sentencing. The 22-year-old Clare man sexually assaulted the girl after the two made contact through Snapchat and he has failed to turn up for his sentencing as he is on Covid-19 lockdown in France. Travel restrictions in France concerning Covid-19 have meant that the man has been unable to fly back to Ireland. At the court in February, the teenage complainant said she wanted justice for the sexual abuse perpetrated on her by a “vile creature” when she was aged 12. The teenager, now 17, stated that her life has only gone downhill since the accused “abused me at …

A VICTIM of child cruelty told Ennis Circuit Criminal Court this week that he “often thought about killing his mother”, such was the level of violence in the home. The victim, who is now in his 20s but was aged between 12 and 17 during the period of abuse, described his life as “a living hell” and says he will “never be able to fully get over the horrible things” his mother put him through. The young man made a disclosure to his school and gardaí when he was 17, detailing cruelty against himself and his three younger siblings between 2012 and 2015. He described being beaten with a boat paddle until it broke, being whipped with an electrical cable and being forced to do a handstand while his broken arm was in a cast. He said he needed to watch You Tube videos to learn how to remove the cast because his mother would not take him to follow-up …

A HSE paramedic faces a prison term up to five years after pleading guilty to assaulting two female first aid students when he placed them in a choke hold five years ago. Andrew Long, aged 35, changed his plea at Ennis Circuit Court last Friday just before the State and defence were about to make their closing speeches before a jury at the end of the three day trial. Mr Long, who knocked mother of one, Mary Nihill out and rendered her unconscious with his choke hold, said ‘guilty’ when re-arraigned on the charges. Mr Long changed his plea after discussions between his legal team and the State prior to the court where the State agreed to a less serious charge against Mr Long’s second victim and mother of three, Elise McMahon. However, Mr Long of Carraig Dubh, Tobertaosceain, Ennis now faces a jail term up to five years after his plea of guilty to the more serious assault causing …

The judge who presides over the circuit criminal court in Clare has stated that the whole court system is going to come to a standstill due to the lack of judges and lack of court staff. On the final day of criminal sittings at Ennis Circuit Court in 2017, Judge Gerald Keys said that the failure of Government to appoint new judges is resulting in the mounting backlog of cases before the criminal circuit court in Clare. In court, Judge Keys was dealing with an 81 strong circuit court list and he said, “There is a lack of staff, a lack of judges and lack of everything and it is grinding to a halt – the whole system is going to come to a stand-still.” The circuit court sits four times a year in County Clare for a number of weeks each time to hear criminal cases while other days are listed for sentencing and the call over of cases. …

AN Ennis building contractor who was “ill prepared” to be in charge of a company employing hundreds of people, has escaped jail but been fined €10,000, having committed “significant Revenue fraud of €2.594 million”. Patrick Mahony, 49, with an address at Craglea, Woodstock was sentenced at Ennis Circuit Criminal Court on Tuesday, having pleaded guilty to five charges out of a total of 16 under the Taxes Consolidation Act 1997. The accused was a former director of Boxform Limited, now in liquidation, a company that had a turnover in excess of €8m at its peak and employed up to 350 people nationwide. The outstanding tax liability across the 16 charges, the court outlined, came to €2,594,446. The five charges are that Mahony, as a director of Boxform Limited, “knowingly or wilfully” delivered incorrect VAT returns to the Collector General in connection with the VAT periods of January/February 2006, November/December 2006 and November/December 2007. He also admitted to failing to file …

Ennis Circuit Court heard how gardaí operating a traffic check point in Shannon seized more than an uninsured vehicle when, in a subsequent search of the vehicle, almost €100,000 worth of cannabis was uncovered. Alan Dowie, 29, of 54 Rossbracken, Shannon pleaded guilty to having €97,512 worth of cannabis for sale or supply at Clonmoney West on March 16, 2016 and with having possession of cannabis herb at his address on the same date. Garda Barry Doherty outlined at Ennis Circuit Criminal Court on Tuesday that he, along with other gardaí, had started a traffic check point at Clonmoney West when he saw a van making a U-turn on approach and head off in the direction of Sixmilebridge. They pursued the van and indicated for it to pull over. He spoke with the accused, who was the driver, and there was also a passenger in the van. Dowie told gardaí he had been loaned the van to move furniture and …

EAST Clare gardaí and the Department of Agriculture were today [Thursday] commended for what was described as “without question the most outstanding piece of police work” in a cattle rustling case. Remarkably the comments were made by the defence counsel for Padraig O’Brien, (42), of Magherigh, Mountshannon who pleaded guilty at Ennis Circuit Criminal Court to 15 counts of theft offences relating to the animals worth €17,000. The offences involved the theft of five in-calf heifers from Bohatch, Mountshannon between January 17 and 18, 2015; the theft of six heifers from Kilrateera, Mountshannon between May 23 and 24, 2013, and the theft of four cows from Bohatch between December 8 and 9, 2013. Gardaí and the Department of Agriculture used DNA testing to trace the stolen cattle through their progeny providing links back to O’Brien. Presiding Judge Gerald Keys commended the gardaí for their “Trojan work” highlighting that this country’s system of tracing cattle is “one of the best in …

A POLISH man, found to be cultivating almost €165,000 worth of cannabis in the attic of a rented house in Kilkee, said he did it to help pay for his wedding. However, since being detected, his former fiancée has left him and he has spent a year in jail. Adam Wrobel (23) and his former fiancée, Jagoga Gajeuska (20), who were both living at an address at Lislanahan Lower, Kilkee, appeared before Ennis Circuit Criminal Court on Friday last for their sentencing hearing. Wrobel pleaded guilty to cultivation, while Gajeuska pleaded guilty to allowing a premises to be used for cultivation on January 13, 2014. Garda Eoin Daly gave evidence that the owner of a property at Lislanahan Lower raised concerns about his property, after receiving a €640 electricity bill. The landlord said there were two Polish nationals living in the house and this had been arranged through a third party, who was also Polish. He told the gardaí that …