Two gardai cleared of assaulting teen who had underwear searched in drug probe
Two gardai have been acquitted of falsely imprisoning and assaulting a teenage father-to-be who was stopped for a drugs search outside a Dublin maternity hospital.
Gardai Hugh O'Connor and Patrick Nally were cleared of the charges after a judge ruled the search was lawful and the force they used in restraining the 17-year-old was reasonable.
Their trial followed the conviction of a third garda who had subjected the teen to 'degrading treatment' by pouring cups of water down his trousers.
Garda Patrick Nally
Judge John Hughes said 'all it takes is one bad apple to spoil the barrel' and while Gardai O'Connor and Nally were not guilty of any offence, they 'should have reported their so-called colleague to the authorities.'
The two gardai, from the drug unit at Dublin's Store Street station, had pleaded not guilty at Dublin District Court to assault causing harm to the teenager and falsely imprisoning him at Granby Place on January 9, 2023.
The third garda, who drove the patrol car, was not before the court, having previously been convicted, with a sentence under appeal.
The complainant said he was "minding his own business" and walking from the Rotunda on an errand for his girlfriend who was in labour when the garda car pulled up.
He told them he 'didn't have time for this' and walked on. The gardai smelled cannabis, followed him, and the driver and Gda O'Connor got out to search him.
The driver took the teenager's phone and dropped it in a puddle before bending his Leap card and bank cards in half. A grinder was also found which the driver threw into the car. Gda Nally, still in the car, examined the grinder and finding nothing evidential, threw it aside, but it landed in a puddle.
Gda O'Connor looked inside the teenager's tracksuit bottoms and underwear. He said he did not know the complainant was a minor at the time as he had failed to give them his birth date.
As Gda O'Connor returned to the car with the driver, he saw the youth picking up what he thought was a contraband item. He went back, grabbed him and put him in a 'goose neck hold' before being joined by Gda Nally who used a 'straight arm pressure point' technique to help restrain him.
The youth denied he was obstructing the gardai and maintained they were "rough" and he was hurt. The prosecution said the teen suffered soft tissue injuries from the restraint.
While the two gardai held him, the driver got back out, filled a cup with water from the puddle and poured onto the seat of the teen's tracksuit bottoms, twice.
Garda Hugh O'Connor
'I don't believe I behaved inappropriately,' Gda O'Connor said of his own actions. 'I believe what I was doing was required. I believe it was a genuine search with genuine grounds and the amount of force was appropriate at the time.'
He did not see the first time the driver poured water on the teen but saw the second. It was inappropriate but he did not challenge him or report it and 'in hindsight I should have.'
Gda Nally also denied using excessive force, saying 'It was proportionate to the level of resistance that we were getting.'
He did not see the driver pouring water on the teen.
'I wouldn't condone that type of behaviour at all,' he said.
Neither of the gardai made any report of the search.
The judge said 'urgency is often required' in a search and he believed the gardai used reasonable force in the 'dynamic circumstances" they were in.
The case before him was not about the driver's behaviour, which was 'reprehensible," he said. The driver had humiliated the teenager with 'degrading treatment' that showed 'total disregard for his human rights.'
'All it takes is one bad apple to spoil the barrel,' Judge Hughes said. 'Gardai Nally and O'Connor should have reported their so-called colleague to the authorities. Had they done so, they might not have been before the court at all.'
He dismissed the charges.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Irish Times
4 hours ago
- Irish Times
Man charged following death of a man (70s) found with injuries at house in Waterford
Gardaí in Waterford are appealing for witnesses after the death of a man aged in his 70s in Waterford City on Friday. Gardaí and emergency services responded to reports of an incident at the house in St Catherine's Grange shortly after 2pm. A man was discovered at the scene in an unresponsive condition. He was brought to University Hospital Waterford, where he died on Sunday. A man his 30s was arrested at the scene and was detained at a Garda station within the Waterford-Kilkenny Division under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act, 1984. READ MORE He was later charged and appeared before Waterford District Court on Sunday. The local Coroner and the Office of the State Pathologist were notified and a postmortem examination is to be carried out. A technical and forensic examination at the scene has been completed. A senior officer is leading the investigation and a family liaison office is providing support to the deceased's family. An incident room has been established at Waterford Garda station. Anyone with information is asked to contact Waterford Garda station 051 305 300 or the Garda Confidential Line 1800 666 111.
Irish Daily Mirror
10 hours ago
- Irish Daily Mirror
Man in court over alleged sword attack on Garda: 'I will f****** kill you all'
This man is accused of attacking a Garda with a two foot long samurai sword - and shouting: 'I will f*****g kill you all.' Zbigniew Pisula (45), with an address at Drimnagh Park, Ballyogan Road in Dublin, appeared before a special sitting of Dublin's District Court today charged with assaulting a Garda, possession of a samurai sword, and resisting arrest under the Public Order Act. The court heard how gardai were alerted via a 999 call to a man allegedly walking through a housing estate at Clay Farm in Ballyogan, with a large samurai sword in the early hours of Sunday morning. The Irish Mirror's Crime Writers Michael O'Toole and Paul Healy are writing a new weekly newsletter called Crime Ireland. Click here to sign up and get it delivered to your inbox every week Giving evidence of arrest, charge and caution, Detective Garda Shane Donovan of Blackrock Garda Station told the court that the accused man responded with the words 'not guilty' when charged with each alleged offence after caution. He further told the court that gardai were preparing a file to the Director of Public Prosecutions on the matter for direction. He told the court that the maximum sentence on conviction for the alleged section three assault is ten years imprisonment. In objecting to bail the Detective outlined the nature of the alleged incident to the court. He stated that officers immediately responded to a public 999 call and observed a man walking around the housing estate with a samurai sword. Detective Gda Donovan said unarmed gardai told the accused man to 'drop the sword' but he took a 'combative stance' and refused - allegedly brandishing the weapon 'in a menacing way' and swinging it towards an officer. A garda took evasive action, he said, and pepper spray was deployed but did not have any effect. Armed gardai were called to the incident and pursued the accused who is alleged to have fled on foot as officers shouted 'armed gardai' and 'drop the weapon' at him. The Detective told the court that the accused man ran across a green area into the front garden of a home of a family with a small child. He is alleged to have raised the sword, which was attached to a chord on his wrist, preventing him from being able to drop it. Armed gardai drew their firearms and made verbal demands to the accused to disarm himself - and he failed to do so, the Detective told the court. The accused man is alleged to have told officers at the scene 'I will f*****g kill you all,' and 'f*****g kill me. You will all f*****g die,' and 'shoot me.' He is alleged to have continued to say 'I will kill you,' before gardai swarmed him and made an effort to remove the sword. In making an effort to remove the sword one Garda received cuts to his hand from the weapon, the court heard - while the accused was trying to free himself and was 'actively resisting.' At this point in court the accused man, who was sitting in the dock dressed in a white t shirt shouted and said 'I can't hear my charges.' The presiding Judge intervened and told those present in court to be silent. Detective Gda Donovan said the samurai sword was seized - and that it is a two foot two long blade. He further stated that the alleged incident was captured on CCTV from a house across the road. The accused man was arrested and detained and interviewed in Dundrum Garda station, where he is alleged to have told officers he was doing 'Kung Fu' training in the Clay Farm area at the time. He stated he was defending himself when gardai approached him. Gardai objected to bail arguing there was a danger to the life and personal safety of the community - and that the accused allegedly admitted possession of the weapon. The alleged weapon was also shown in court by the Detective - who argued there had been a disregard for the safety of the public in what was a built up residential area - and that the accused waved the weapon at officers who were standing only a few feet away. Gardai had made numerous pleas for him to disarm himself, the Detective stated - and a Garda received a cut to his hand in what was a very volatile and dangerous situation. He further alleged that the accused man told Gardai he often trains with weapons in public. A solicitor for the accused argued for bail - stating that she did not believe the threshold under the act was met. The presiding Judge refused bail, pointing to Gardai stating the degree and seriousness of the alleged offence. He stated that the accused had been 'caught red handed' and was captured by Gardai committing the alleged offence. The court was satisfied, he said of the evidence and that the accused tried to evade Gardai and that his conduct amounted to a potential danger to life. The accused was remanded into custody - to appear again before a sitting of the court via video link on Wednesday. For more of the latest breaking news from the Irish Mirror check out our homepage by clicking here
Irish Independent
2 days ago
- Irish Independent
Mountjoy prisoner given extra jail time after his ‘distinctive gait' linked him to string of thefts
Gary Herbert (42) who is currently serving a custodial sentence in Mountjoy Prison, appeared before Tallaght District Court, where he pleaded guilty to one charge of possession of stolen property, relating to a grey Aovo Pro e-scooter. He pleaded not guilty to three other charges - involving the theft of cash from two parked cars and the possession of additional stolen electronic goods - but was convicted on all counts following a hearing before Judge Patricia McNamara. The guilty plea related to an incident on October 1, 2024, at Firhouse Road, Tallaght, where the defendant was stopped by Gardaí in the early hours of the morning while riding an electric scooter. Garda Conor Lavin told the court that at approximately 3.30am, he observed the accused acting suspiciously. Herbert attempted to flee but was stopped and searched. Gardaí recovered a grey Aovo Pro e-scooter, a pair of white Apple AirPods, a pair of black AirPods, and a grey iPod. Herbert admitted the scooter was not his and entered a guilty plea to that charge, but denied stealing the other items. He also denied stealing cash in two separate incidents involving parked cars. In both cases, CCTV footage was shown in court, and the vehicle owners gave evidence. One car - a Lexus parked in the Ballyroan area - was entered during the night of August 22, 2024, while the other - an unlocked Volvo in Rathfarnham - was targeted on October 27, 2024, with €150 in cash and coinage taken. Although the footage was recorded in darkness, Gardaí said Herbert could be identified in both videos by his "distinctive gait". Judge McNamara said she was satisfied it was the accused in both videos and convicted Herbert of theft and two further counts of possession of stolen property, relating to the AirPods and iPod. The court heard Herbert is currently serving an eight-month sentence, imposed in June 2025, and is due for release in April 2026. Judge McNamara imposed a nine-month sentence for the new matters, to run consecutively to his existing term. She suspended six months of that sentence for two years, meaning Herbert will serve an additional three months - unless he reoffends. Defence counsel said Herbert has long-standing issues with addiction and mental health, but had been engaging well while in custody. Judge McNamara noted that some of the offending took place only months after his last conviction. 'He was out opening cars and taking whatever he could find,' she said. 'There was no premeditation, but this was deliberate. The court had to review CCTV and hear from multiple witnesses due to his decision to contest the charges.' She warned that if Herbert is convicted again within two years of release, the suspended portion of the sentence will be activated and he will return to jail. Funded by the Courts Reporting Scheme.
