Sinn Fein MEP admits to 'serious' trust issues after ex jailed under Coco's Law
Sinn Féin MEP Kathleen Funchion said she has 'very serious trust issues' and her life has been changed after her former partner was jailed under Coco's Law.
On Monday, Sean Tyrell was jailed under Section 4 of the Harassment and Harmful Communications Act for four months, with a separate four-month jail term suspended for two years.
The court heard that Tyrell made false accusations about Ms Funchion, saying she had been unfaithful.
They began a relationship in 2016, and after they split in August 2022, he contacted a journalist at a national newspaper saying a Sinn Féin politician was making false claims about domestic violence and financial abuse.
Screengrabs of these emails were sent to Ms Funchion, as he threatened to give the journalist her name if she didn't meet a number of his demands.
One of these demands was taking a lie detector test. Speaking after Tyrell was jailed, the MEP said she considered doing this, and these thoughts are the reality for many people who are coercively controlled.
She told RTÉ's News At One on Tuesday: 'He wanted me to take a lie detector test, which I would say at one point I was considering doing. That shows how it really gets into your head and you really do doubt yourself.
"When I think back about that now, I thought that this will resolve the issue, that someone being able to go through your phone, that you can show that there's nothing to hide.
'Somebody who is controlling like that, no matter what you do, nothing is going to be good enough.'
Ms Funchion decided to go to the Gardaí after she was at 'breaking point' in August 2022.
She said: 'I was very, very upset. I wasn't sleeping or eating. I feel like I spent all of that time in my life crying... I went into the Gardaí and spoke to them.
"They have been incredible, and unbelievable in the work that they do on a daily basis. I found that they were objective, but so professional and kind in their approach. They really made me feel that I wasn't going crazy.'
While the Sinn Féin politician said she felt 'physically lighter' leaving court on Monday, it has left her with 'very serious trust issues'.
She continued: 'I don't see that ever leaving me. I find it difficult to acknowledge this about myself, but it has changed my life, and not in a positive way.
"I question people more that come into my life, and I keep my circle very, very small... But I am really glad that I did see this through to the end, and that there was justice yesterday."
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Irish Post
2 hours ago
- Irish Post
Witness appeal after deaths of two people in Galway house fire
GARDAÍ have appealed for witnesses to come forward after two people died in a house fire in Connemara, Co. Galway. Officers and members of the fire service were called to reports of a fire at a home at Gleann Mhic Mhuireann in Casla at around 6.20am on June 3. Once the fire was brought under control the bodies of two people were discovered at the scene. They have since been named locally as Sonia 'Sonny' Jacobs, a US native, aged in her 70s, who moved to Ireland more than a decade ago. Ms Jacobs had previously served 17 years in a US prison, including time on death row, after she was wrongfully convicted of the murder of a US policeman and a Canadian constable. Sonia 'Sonny' Jacobs died in the house fire A man in his thirties, who is understood to have been her carer, also died in the incident. He has been named locally as Kevin Kelly, who was from the Casla area. Confirming his 'unexpected and tragic death' Mr Kelly's family said he will be 'lovingly missed and always remembered by his mother Fiona, his father Ken, Ken's partner Maureen and her son Jonathan, Kevin's partner Sheree and his siblings Jill and Cúán'. Mr Kelly's funeral will take place at Discovery Church at 1pm on June 7. The family have asked mourners to wear bright colours to the service. 'We respectfully request that we celebrate his wonderful life by all wearing bright colours to represent the fun, laughter and personality of Kevin,' they said. Gardaí have appealing for any witnesses to the incident to come forward. Anyone with information is asked to contact Clifden Garda Station on 095 22500, the Garda Confidential Line 1800 666 111 or any Garda Station,' they state. See More: Connemara, Galway, House Fire
Irish Independent
3 hours ago
- Irish Independent
HIQA stops admissions to Laois nursing home featured in ‘RTÉ Investigates' programme amid concerns
RTÉ News reports that HIQA confirmed that "through its inspections" of both nursing homes it had "identified a number of significant concerns". The findings of the RTÉ investigation into two nursing homes run by Ireland's largest provider was likened to 'institutional abuse'. The 'deeply distressing' footage in RTÉ Investigates – Inside Ireland's Nursing Homes, which aired last night, details a litany of failings in two homes run by Emeis Ireland, formerly Orpea. The French-owned company has 27 privately-run facilities here, providing more than 2,400 beds. It has a global revenue of more than €5.6bn. After concerns were raised by several whistleblowers, RTÉ sent two undercover researchers to apply for healthcare assistant roles. They obtained footage from The Residence Portlaoise and Beneavin Manor in Glasnevin, Dublin. Among the breaches detailed were inadequate staffing levels, which at times left one employee looking after 23 residents, and people being refused help to go to the toilet. One resident was left on the toilet for an extended period of time with a broken call bell, after the worker went off on her break. When she was eventually tended to, the nurse was seen cleaning her hands afterwards on the resident's skirt. In another incident, an elderly man in a wheelchair pleaded to go to the toilet, only to have his request refused. He was not taken to the bathroom until 25 minutes after his first request. Reacting to the footage, consultant geriatrician David Robinson said it was 'neglect… in a setting that is supposed to be caring'. Staff in the Portlaoise facility were secretly filmed discussing how they had run out of incontinence pads and would not get any for another 10 days. They were told they would instead have to use 'sticky pads and underwear'. In one scene captured on camera, a nurse says 'using incorrect incontinence wear is a form of abuse' and they are 'actually causing bed sores'. This morning, HIQA confirmed that admissions to The Residence Portlaoise had been stopped "as part of its escalatory action". A spokesperson said; "further inspection reports on both of these centres are currently being finalised and will be published shortly". "We are very concerned about the practices described in the programme and we have engaged directly with those responsible for the operation of the nursing homes," the statement continued. "Accordingly, we will be taking the necessary actions with the provider to ensure safe and effective care and support to all residents". Incidents In one incident at Beneavin Manor, Glasnevin, which houses many people living with dementia, one vulnerable resident was seen being left in her wheelchair for up to six hours. When she was eventually moved, the obligatory hoist was not used. The care worker insisted that she and the undercover reporter pull the frail woman up by her clothing because 'they are not glass'. When another man requested to use the toilet, he was told to use his incontinent pad instead. The same man was later found sitting in the dayroom in urine-soaked clothing. That night, he called repeatedly for someone to help him go to the toilet, but he was again told to use his pad. The next day, he was found lying on a soaking wet bed without any sheets. Later that night, there were no bed sheets left and staff instead used incontinence pads as a makeshift covering. Professor Rónán Collins, a consultant geriatrician, said the care of this man was 'really quite distressing'. 'I can't say any more about how much it goes against the grain of every kind of gerontological principle I would hold dear,' he said. Emeis Ireland said it was 'unacceptable' for residents to have to wait for care or be dismissed when requesting assistance. It also apologised to residents and their families for the distress caused by the failings identified. 'Emeis Ireland apologises unequivocally to all residents and their families for the suffering and distress experienced as a result of failures identified in the care provided. We recognise and deeply regret the breach of trust that has occurred in relation to the service standards we promise, and for any failure to uphold the dignity of some residents at all times. These lapses fall short of the values and standards we set for ourselves as an organisation. "Emeis acknowledges the serious issues raised in relation to The Residence Portlaoise and Beneavin Manor. The findings are deeply distressing, wholly unjustifiable, and entirely unacceptable. We express our deep concern, as the wellbeing, dignity, and safety of residents in our care will always remain our foremost priority. 'We have commenced a comprehensive review across both nursing homes. We will not tolerate any individual or systemic neglect.'
Irish Times
5 hours ago
- Irish Times
Gerry Adams defamation verdict won't have a chilling effect on journalism - and here's why
The defamation case between Gerry Adams and the BBC has many points of interest, legally and politically, but its implications for journalism have been vastly overstated. The former Sinn Féin president won in Dublin's High Court last week because the BBC broadcast a serious allegation against him in a programme that cited only one anonymous source, with no corroboration. Every news organisation would aspire to do better than this under almost all circumstances. Part of the BBC's defence is that it should still have been able to broadcast the claim, aired by its Northern Ireland investigation strand Spotlight in 2016, as a matter of public interest. There are often cases where it is impossible to name sources or publish corroborating evidence. To do so might place people in danger, expose them to prosecution or breach essential promises of confidentiality. READ MORE Irish defamation law allows for a public-interest defence, but this has yet to be used successfully. The BBC is not alone in fearing the law is not working as intended. [ If Gerry Adams wanted to put manners on the BBC, why not do it in Belfast? Opens in new window ] Even in a matter of public interest, however, a news organisation should still demonstrate a serious allegation is more than one person's claim. The BBC said in court it had corroboration from five other confidential sources, but it had not mentioned this in programme, to be fair to Adams. The court was unimpressed by this argument, and little wonder. The BBC's final defence was that there must be freedom to report on figures of historical importance and losing to Adams could create a chill factor over investigations into the Troubles. It asked the jury to make no award of damages, even if it found Spotlight's claim to be untrue. The best insight into how the BBC handles a mistake comes not from the insinuations of Gerry Adams but from Terry Wogan, a truly great Irishman, who after every crisis would quip: 'Deputy heads must head roll' Yet the judge had been clear throughout that the case was not about the Troubles. The jury was instructed to decide if Adams had rehabilitated his reputation sufficiently as a 'peacemaker' after the Belfast Agreement for a 2016 allegation about a 2006 murder to damage his reputation. The jury found it had, although its €100,000 award was on the lower end of what might have been expected. Many Troubles victims will be dismayed to hear Adams described as a peacemaker, but his Troubles reputation remains where it belongs. Speaking outside court after the verdict, Adams said taking the case was 'about putting manners on the British Broadcasting Corporation'. Seamus Dooley, secretary of the National Union of Journalists , condemned this comment as 'chilling', as well as 'unfair and unreasonable', given Spotlight's 40-year record of 'amazing investigative journalism'. An Amnesty report this week found Northern Ireland is the most dangerous place in the UK to be a journalist. Public figures have a responsibility not to make matters worse. However, Adams's remark will not have made much difference to anyone: it was a familiar sort of jibe, to be enjoyed by a harmless republican audience. Only loyalists and dissident republicans pose a physical threat to the media. Adams added he suspected the BBC had come under 'direct political interference' to continue a case it could have settled years earlier with an apology. It is only slightly facetious to suggest that Sinn Féin has already benefited enough from murky British dealings. What political motivation could there be to press on with a plainly weak case that was almost certain to work out in Adams's favour? The obvious explanation is by far the most likely: the BBC pressed on because it is an intractable bureaucracy with no respect for public money. Adams might be familiar with the concept of an organisation that struggles to back down. There has been a recent, relevant demonstration of this culture within BBC Northern Ireland. In 2023, it reached a confidential settlement in an alleged bullying case with a Spotlight producer, Lena Ferguson. She received an award and costs with no admission of liability. The BBC then issued a statement congratulating itself. 'We didn't want to be in a lengthy dispute with Lena and are happy that we can all now move forward,' it said. Yet the case had dragged out for four years, involving allegations dating back 20 years from Ferguson and others. The problem became serious enough to be raised in the House of Commons. Many people in the media in Belfast feared Spotlight had become dysfunctional, with implications for the quality of its journalism. They were appalled by the BBC's legal obstinacy towards Ferguson but hardly surprised. The best insight into how the BBC handles a mistake comes not from the insinuations of Gerry Adams but from Terry Wogan, a truly great Irishman, who after every crisis would quip: 'Deputy heads must roll.' We may be years away from even that stage of this fiasco.
