Man who illegally entered 88-year-old's home leaving him in fear has jail term doubled after failed appeal
Cash was convicted in the District Court of trespassing on a building in a manner that causes or is likely to cause fear in another person contrary to section 13 (1) of the Criminal Justice (Public Order) Act, 1994.
He was sentenced to nine months in custody with the final six months suspended and later lodged an appeal against his conviction. However his defence counsel, Asma Saleh BL, yesterday informed the court that the case would proceed by appealing the severity of sentence only and the prosecuting garda's evidence was not contested.
Garda Padraig Murphy told the District Court Appeals Court that gardai got a report on February 22, 2023 from the daughter of the injured party.
He said that a neighbour alerted her that they saw a white van outside her father's house and that a man knocked on the window and the door of the house.
Garda Murphy said that the man was heard shouting 'I've got you that' before entering the house. He said that the neighbour saw the man in the sitting room and he later left the property in his van.
Gda Murphy said that the victim was left 'very shaken and pale' after the incident.
Garda Murphy said that the man was in the care of his daughters, who left him alone for one hour a day. He said this had never happened to the man before and he had no memory of the incident due to his memory loss difficulties.
Garda Murphy said that CCTV was obtained and shared with gardai allowing Cash to be identified, arrested and detained. He said that in the interview, Cash admitted to being at the scene and leaving a calling card. He was charged with trespassing and was convicted in the District Court.
Ms Saleh said that Cash is 'extremely remorseful' for his actions and that he is aware it was bad behaviour.
ADVERTISEMENT
She said that her client's doctor reports that he suffers from anxiety, depression and low mood swings. She also said that his wife is currently pregnant after a long time in IVF treatment.
The daughter of the injured party gave a victim impact statement, telling the court that she is her father's full time carer and that he used to have one hour on his own.
She said when she came into her father's house that day he didn't know what had happened and was very pale.
She said that he shook as she showered him and he was very upset.
She said: 'that man took every bit of independence from my father'. She said that her father worked all of his life and he 'didn't deserve for that to happen to him'.
Judge Dara Hayes said that the court had the power to increase the appellant's jail sentence as well as decreasing it on appeal.
He said that the original sentence of nine months in custody with the final six months suspended was 'lenient under the circumstances'.
He said that it was clear from the injured party's reaction that he was put in a position of some distress.
The judge said that whatever independence the man had was taken away and that the injured party was entitled to be unmolested in his own home.
Judge Hayes decided to keep the sentence of the District Court of nine months in custody but only suspended the final three months. This represents an increase from an effective three months in custody in the original sentencing, to six months in custody after appeal.
He said that he would suspend the final three months for the period of 12 months on the condition that Cash keeps the peace and does not contact the injured party or his family again.
Funded by the Courts Reporting Scheme.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Irish Independent
18 hours ago
- Irish Independent
Man allegedly put tracker in child's car seat to ‘monitor' his ex-partner in ‘insidious' safety order breach
The man, who is aged in his 30s and from Dublin, appeared before Judge Patricia McNamara at Tallaght District Court. Garda Gavin Cribbin objected to bail under the O'Callaghan principles, citing eight alleged breaches of a safety order during June and July 2025. The court heard the most serious breach involved a small tracking device allegedly hidden in the seat where the couple's child usually sits. The device was discovered on June 29, after the injured party's relative - a passenger in her car - received an alert on their phone warning that a tracker was nearby. The complainant used two separate apps to confirm the presence of the device and eventually located it tucked into the child's car seat. The court heard the accused had allegedly borrowed the seat to facilitate a custody exchange - and it was alleged he later admitted to a relative that he had planted the tracker. Detective Sergeant Ruth Finnegan told the court it was "an AirTag-type of device". Judge McNamara described the tracker incident as 'particularly insidious' and said it formed part of a worrying pattern of behaviour that posed a real risk of interference with the complainant. The accused is facing eight alleged breaches of the safety order, four of which relate to email contact. The court heard the man was only permitted to contact the injured party regarding child access but allegedly sent around 50 emails a day over three consecutive days - some of which were described as abusive and made no reference to child access. One message allegedly contained repeated verbal abuse, and the complainant eventually blocked his email address. The injured party gave evidence in court, saying she had been in a relationship with the man for almost a decade and that they share children. ADVERTISEMENT She was granted a two-year safety order in April 2025, after applying earlier in the year. 'He won't stop contacting me or intimidating me,' she said. 'I feel like he's going to snap one day.' The woman described how daily life had become fearful and tense, saying she felt sick when she realised she was being tracked. 'I don't know what it will take for him to leave me alone,' she told the court. She also described a custody handover on July 12, where the man allegedly shouted abuse in front of the children, followed her on foot, and initially refused to hand the children over. Garda Cribbin said that while no explicit threat had been made, the tracking incident was of particular concern and reflected what he called an 'evolution of behaviour' that was becoming more serious and invasive. Defence solicitor John O'Leary said his client maintains the presumption of innocence and pointed out there was no history of violence. Refusing bail, Judge McNamara said she was satisfied there was a real risk of interference with the injured party and refused bail under the O'Callaghan principles. She said: 'There is a presumption of innocence, but I am satisfied from what I've heard that there is a possibility of interference with the applicant in the safety order.' She described the tracker allegation as 'particularly insidious,' adding: 'It's not even the emails, even though they're quite abusive - it's the allegation that he borrowed a car seat and put a tracker in there to monitor her movements.' Judge McNamara noted that the injured party had expressed fear and that the behaviour appeared to be escalating. The man was remanded in custody to appear via video link at Cloverhill District Court at a later date. Funded by the Courts Reporting Scheme.
Irish Independent
21 hours ago
- Irish Independent
Man who illegally entered 88-year-old's home leaving him in fear has jail term doubled after failed appeal
The appeal court heard that Gerry Cash (33) with an address at Tombrack, Ferns, Co Wexford left the vulnerable pensioner, who has short term memory loss, in a distressed state after entering his Co Kildare house. Cash was convicted in the District Court of trespassing on a building in a manner that causes or is likely to cause fear in another person contrary to section 13 (1) of the Criminal Justice (Public Order) Act, 1994. He was sentenced to nine months in custody with the final six months suspended and later lodged an appeal against his conviction. However his defence counsel, Asma Saleh BL, yesterday informed the court that the case would proceed by appealing the severity of sentence only and the prosecuting garda's evidence was not contested. Garda Padraig Murphy told the District Court Appeals Court that gardai got a report on February 22, 2023 from the daughter of the injured party. He said that a neighbour alerted her that they saw a white van outside her father's house and that a man knocked on the window and the door of the house. Garda Murphy said that the man was heard shouting 'I've got you that' before entering the house. He said that the neighbour saw the man in the sitting room and he later left the property in his van. Gda Murphy said that the victim was left 'very shaken and pale' after the incident. Garda Murphy said that the man was in the care of his daughters, who left him alone for one hour a day. He said this had never happened to the man before and he had no memory of the incident due to his memory loss difficulties. Garda Murphy said that CCTV was obtained and shared with gardai allowing Cash to be identified, arrested and detained. He said that in the interview, Cash admitted to being at the scene and leaving a calling card. He was charged with trespassing and was convicted in the District Court. Ms Saleh said that Cash is 'extremely remorseful' for his actions and that he is aware it was bad behaviour. ADVERTISEMENT She said that her client's doctor reports that he suffers from anxiety, depression and low mood swings. She also said that his wife is currently pregnant after a long time in IVF treatment. The daughter of the injured party gave a victim impact statement, telling the court that she is her father's full time carer and that he used to have one hour on his own. She said when she came into her father's house that day he didn't know what had happened and was very pale. She said that he shook as she showered him and he was very upset. She said: 'that man took every bit of independence from my father'. She said that her father worked all of his life and he 'didn't deserve for that to happen to him'. Judge Dara Hayes said that the court had the power to increase the appellant's jail sentence as well as decreasing it on appeal. He said that the original sentence of nine months in custody with the final six months suspended was 'lenient under the circumstances'. He said that it was clear from the injured party's reaction that he was put in a position of some distress. The judge said that whatever independence the man had was taken away and that the injured party was entitled to be unmolested in his own home. Judge Hayes decided to keep the sentence of the District Court of nine months in custody but only suspended the final three months. This represents an increase from an effective three months in custody in the original sentencing, to six months in custody after appeal. He said that he would suspend the final three months for the period of 12 months on the condition that Cash keeps the peace and does not contact the injured party or his family again. Funded by the Courts Reporting Scheme.
Irish Independent
a day ago
- Irish Independent
Man who was pepper sprayed at Longitude and urinated in a cell after abusing Garda tells court cannabis ‘isn't a drug'
Paul Davis (38), of Deanstown Road, Finglas, Dublin 11, pleaded guilty at Tallaght District Court to criminal damage at Rathfarnham Garda Station and to threatening and abusive behaviour and intoxication in a public place at Marlay Park on June 29, 2024. The court heard Davis was highly intoxicated at the festival when Gardaí observed him arguing with security staff around 5:55pm. He was slurring his speech and acting in an aggressive and confrontational manner. When approached by Garda Stephen Walsh and asked to calm down, Davis called the garda a 'c**t' repeatedly and continued to be aggressive. He was pepper sprayed and arrested before being brought to Rathfarnham Garda Station. While in custody, he urinated on a cell door. The court heard that Davis has 54 previous convictions, including those for public order and criminal damage. The court had previously heard in May that Davis had been drug-free for 10 months, regularly attended AA and NA meetings, and was engaging with Cuan Mhuire services. However, he later admitted to the Probation Service that he still smokes cannabis daily and was found unsuitable for community service. When asked to explain this in court, Davis said: 'Cannabis isn't a drug - it's a plant.' Judge Patricia McNamara responded: 'Oh, well then you think heroin is just a plant?' Davis replied: 'Well no, heroin is chemicalised.' Judge McNamara said: 'There are plenty of chemicals in cannabis too. There are chemicals in it you'd find under your kitchen sink - it's not some little plant growing from your windowsill. You could be smoking rat poison." ADVERTISEMENT She added: 'That kind of attitude shows a complete naivety about drugs. Those are the kinds of plants that will ruin your life.' Davis paid €105 in court to cover the cost of cleaning the cell. Judge McNamara convicted Davis and imposed a three-month prison sentence, suspended for 12 months, while she also fined him €200, with four months to pay. She told him he must remain of sober habits and abstain from all illicit or non-prescribed drugs during the suspended period. Funded by the Courts Reporting Scheme.
