Attempt to privately prosecute Louth TD referred to DPP
David Carroll, Dun Saithne Green, Balbriggan, last year stood as an Independent in the same Louth constituency as Deputy Ó Murchú and received 40 first preference votes.
In March he summonsed Mr Ó Murchú to Dundalk District Court alleging that on February 12 last, "at Dundalk area wide, Co. Louth, Ireland, stolen property and services value of €7,000.' It was listed as 'David Carroll vs Ruairí O'Murchu'.
No details were given of the alleged nature of Mr Carroll's complaint.
When the case was first called he attempted to present an invoice to the court.
He said it appeared to be a criminal summons issued by David Carroll and argued that there was no legislation allowing private citizens to issue criminal summonses against other private citizens. It was not a civil summons.
Mr Hughes continued that there was no procedure in law for this.
The prosecutor has to be An Garda Síochána or the DPP.
Judge Nicola Andrews, who had signed the summons, said that Mr Hughes could make submissions on May 7.
On the adjourned date the solicitor said it was his application to set aside the summons.
ADVERTISEMENT
He directed the court to the document and submitted that the allegation was 'very vague'.
The solicitor continued that he assumed it was one of theft and, if so, was a case for the DPP.
Judge Andrews said the matter could be listed for hearing with a 'not guilty' plea entered. Mr Carroll must discharge the relevant burden of proof. It would be up to him to prove his case.
Mr Hughes said that could be one way to go about it.
However, it was his submission that the DPP had to be involved, otherwise this 'can't ever go anywhere'.
Addressing Mr Carroll, the judge said, 'I don't know what you're going to prosecute here'.
He replied that he was bringing it under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice (Theft & Fraud Offences) Act.
Mr Hughes said that was 'helpful'. The DPP had to be involved.
Judge Andrews adjourned the matter to July 9 for DPP directions.
If there was a direction for summary disposal of the case the court would give a hearing date, she said, adding that Mr Hughes should be in a position to have his client present.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
RTÉ News
13 hours ago
- RTÉ News
Family of Elizabeth Plunkett call for cold case review
The family of Elizabeth Plunkett has written to the DPP, the Garda Commissioner and the Minister for Justice requesting a cold case review into her death and a renewed public appeal for evidence. John Shaw and Geoffrey Evans confessed to abducting, raping and murdering both Ms Plunkett in Brittas Bay Co Wicklow, and Mary Duffy in Conamara, Co Galway, in 1976. Originally both men were charged with murder, rape and false imprisonment of Ms Plunkett and Ms Duffy. However, when Shaw began a parole application nearly two years ago, it was revealed he had never been convicted for Ms Plunkett's murder despite previous reports. It was also revealed to the Plunkett family that the State never held an inquest into the death of Ms Plunkett nor ever issued a death certificate in her name. The Plunkett family are collaborating with the team at RTÉ Documentary On One on Stolen Sister, a six-part podcast series currently publishing to raise awareness around Ms Plunkett's case. This collaboration led to an inquest being held into Ms Plunkett's death earlier this year. In January, a verdict of unlawful killing was returned at the inquest at Gorey courthouse. Coroner Dr Seán Nixon sitting gave the cause of death as asphyxia due to strangulation. While Shaw was never convicted of crimes against Ms Plunkett, Evans was convicted of her rape and false imprisonment, but not murder. As Shaw was never convicted of any charges relating to Ms Plunkett, her family said they are no longer considered victims of a crime under the 2019 Parole Act and are not entitled to take part in the parole process. Evans died in 2012. In the Plunketts' letter, written on their behalf by solicitor James MacGuill SC, the family seeks to justify a cold case review. They outline a series of developments since the decision of the statutory Parole Board to no longer view them as victims of a crime. These include the findings of the recent inquest, as well as the post-mortem report issued following Ms Plunkett's death that contained samples of potentially significant evidentiary value that the family believe should be submitted for modern forensic examination. The letter also states that publicity was given to the case by RTÉ because it identified a significant public interest in establishing why Shaw was not prosecuted for such a serious crime. In addition, the correspondence outlines that renewed interest in the case has already led to a new witness coming forward with information about the night Ms Plunkett was abducted. A further incident that was reported to the authorities at the time is also mentioned in the letter. A young woman in Fethard, Co Tipperary, was allegedly chased by two men, who she later identified as Shaw and Evans, after watching a television report of their arrest. The Plunkett family claim these matters warrant immediate investigation as they provide strong corroborative evidence of similar facts to Ms Plunkett's murder and Shaw's statement of confession. The decision to only prosecute Shaw for the murder of Ms Duffy has not yet been made clear to the Plunkett family. P arole application Shaw is serving a life sentence in Arbour Hill Prison for the murder of Ms Duffy in September 1976. According to information given to the Plunkett family by the Victim Liaison Office of the Irish Prison Service, Shaw's most recent parole application has been refused. He will be eligible to apply for parole again in February of next year. The Minister for Justice's office told RTÉ: "The Parole Board, as provided for under the Parole Act 2019, was established on 31 July 2021. The 2019 Act placed the parole process on a statutory footing and established an independent, statutory Parole Board to decide on parole applications. "The Parole Board makes its decisions to grant or refuse parole independently from the Minister for Justice." RTÉ contacted the Parole Board and the Irish Prison Service for comment; both said they do not comment on individual cases. In 2016, the Parole Board recommended that Shaw be given two days of temporary release a year under a prison escort. While the Minister for Justice at the time rejected this suggestion, that decision was later reversed in 2020. Shaw's most recent escorted visit out of prison was granted just two weeks ago, in late May, when he was brought to Dún Laoghaire, Co Dublin, in the company of prison staff and later returned to custody. Kathleen Nolan and Bernie Plunkett, sisters of Elizabeth Plunkett told RTÉ News: "We're relieved that this individual, who confessed to abducting, raping and murdering our beloved Elizabeth has once again been refused parole. "However, he has still not faced justice for what he did to our sister. This is why we're telling Elizabeth's story in the podcast series Stolen Sister, to bring wider public attention to our plight - and to seek for any new witnesses that might be able to help our case. "We're calling on the DPP to tell us why this man never faced the courts for what he did to our Elizabeth. And we're asking gardaí to now re-examine his case so Elizabeth can finally get some justice." If anyone has any information on John Shaw and Geoffrey Evans, the Plunkett family have asked that you contact the podcast makers through documentaries@
Sunday World
20 hours ago
- Sunday World
Mum ‘was aware' of €800 of cannabis found in her home during garda raid
Nicola Dolan (37) admitted possession of the drug, which was found along with weighing scales in her house during a garda raid. A mother of three caught with €800 of cannabis in her Dublin home said it was not hers, but she knew it was there and accepted responsibility. Nicola Dolan (37) admitted possession of the drug, which was found along with weighing scales in her house during a garda raid. Judge Áine Clancy adjourned the case at Blanchardstown District Court for a probation report. Dolan, of Monastery Gate Avenue, Clondalkin, pleaded guilty to possession of cannabis with intent to sell or supply. Nicola Dolan pleaded guilty to cannabis possession. Photo: Paddy Cummins News in 90 Seconds - 7th June The court heard gardaí executed a search warrant at the accused's home and found €800 worth of cannabis and scales. Dolan was co-operative and her only previous convictions were for motoring offences. The DPP consented to the case being dealt with in the district court, and Judge Clancy accepted jurisdiction. The accused did not own the drugs but was aware they were in her home and made the admissions on that basis, her solicitor Aoife McNicholl said. Dolan, who had trained as a hairdresser and worked in a deli, had never been arrested or detained before and was extremely distressed by the situation. The accused had been adamant that she wanted to take responsibility and deal with the matter as soon as possible, so pleaded guilty at the earliest opportunity and apologised. Ms McNicholl asked the judge to consider leaving Dolan without a conviction. Judge Clancy said this was a 'very big ask' as the charge was 'quite serious'. The accused would be aware of the issues around drug misuse and having cannabis at her home was not a good example for her children, the judge said.
Irish Examiner
a day ago
- Irish Examiner
Carlow shooting 'shouldn't have happened, but none of us know the true story', says gun shop owner
Many Irish people pride themselves on the fact that Ireland is practically a 'gun-free' nation. When looking at the atrocities committed so regularly in the US by mass shooters, we comfort ourselves that something of that nature could never happen here. The events at the Fairgreen Shopping Centre in Carlow town last Sunday night have perhaps shaken that belief somewhat. The self-inflicted death of 22-year-old Evan Fitzgerald, who was already on bail and facing charges for the illegal possession of various firearms, while in possession of a shotgun gives rise to many questions. How the young man came to the attention of the gardaí in the first place is well-documented. A man with an admitted 'fascination' with firearms, he and two associates ordered a number of high-powered weapons via the dark web — only to be apprehended by gardaí soon after acquiring them in March of last year. They had come into possession of a handgun, an automatic rifle, and over 40 rounds of ammunition. Prior to his death, Mr Fitzgerald was facing at least 13 charges of possessing firearms, ammunition, and explosive substances. He had been released on bail on strict conditions pending trial. Gardaí believe that he had been suffering from mental health problems prior to the shopping centre incident. The first question is: How did a man with a known fascination for guns, who had no valid gun licence in his possession, come to be able to walk through a shopping centre with a fully-licensed shotgun? The second question is: Was this incident an aberration? Could it happen again? When one looks into the subject, one becomes aware for the first time of an unexpected statistic: Ireland might have a reputation for being gun-free, but that is simply not the case in practice. According to the most recent annual report from An Garda Síochána, valid as at the end of 2023, there were roughly 204,000 licensed firearms in the country at that date, with several thousand illegal versions seized across the year. Each of those weapons would require an individual licence. Put in simple terms, with an adult population of 3.8m people, roughly 5% of that cohort per capita owns a firearm — a massive figure by any standards. 'Huge hobby' That still leaves us far adrift of the US, which has about 120 guns for every 100 population, but it is nevertheless a significant figure for a country where law enforcement is typically not armed (the 5% figure is broadly in alignment with the number of firearms held by the British public). 'It's a huge hobby,' says Pat Cooke, the proprietor of the Hilltop Gun Shop and Ranges in Newtownmountkennedy, Wicklow, and one of Ireland's many registered firearms dealers. He explains that the enthusiasm for shooting as a sport takes many different guises. 'It depends on what kind of sport someone is into. There's clay pigeon shooting, which is huge. Game shooting. Hunting. Then there is just target shooting, which is huge again,' Mr Cooke says, noting that the day prior to our conversation he had a customer in his shop who had just returned from Britain, where he had travelled to take part in a target shooting competition. 'Quite a few people travel during the hunting season to shoot game in Africa,' the 74-year-old says. I used to travel to Germany for shoots. Others go to Russia, Lithuania for super competitions. Quite a lot of people travel to Australia for world shoots Asked what kinds of guns people are looking to acquire when they walk through his door, the broad response is: 'Handguns and rifles, it varies.' Asked how he first came to love shooting, Mr Cooke says he has been involved in the sport 'from when I was a youngster', when there were far more younger people attracted to it than there are now. 'When they were 16, they'd start shooting. We'd walk hail, rain, and snow for the sport with a dog and a gun,' he said. 'We didn't sit at computers all day long, because we didn't have any.' So how complicated is it to get a gun in Ireland? Well, there are two stages. The first is to apply for a licence via An Garda Síochána, a process which has no definite timeframe but will, by and large, take 'weeks into months' to complete, according to sources. Gardaí have been piecing together the last hours of 22-year-old Evan Fitzgerald since Sunday when he fired a shotgun inside Fairgreen Shopping Centre in Carlow before turning the gun on himself. There is one certainty regarding licensed firearms in Ireland so far as the gardaí are concerned: If you want a gun, you need to have a good reason. The majority of licences relate to farming, other professional agricultural requirements, and hunting. If you want to own a firearm in this country for recreation, then you need to be a member of one of the roughly 970 gun clubs in the country. One key difference between the US and here is that there is one reason that will not fly under any circumstances when it comes to applying for a licence in Ireland: You cannot hold a gun here legally for the reason of your own security or self-defence. Firearm application To apply for a licence, the application is made directly to the local garda superintendent, a person who also has the power to revoke same. The process itself is not a pro forma one. Once an application has gone in, the applicant will be subject to a garda interview. Their living space will be inspected to see where the gun will be kept. All guns have to be kept under secure lock and key by their owners, while ammunition has to be stored separately in an inaccessible area. The applicant will be given guidance on the implementation of Ireland's firearms legislation. Every gun, meanwhile, requires a separate licence, meaning the process has to be repeated for every firearm without exception. Then, once a licence has been obtained, the aspiring gun-owner can go about sourcing the firearm they desire. A lot of those guns will be purchased from the aforementioned firearms dealerships. Some others will be imported. Receiving a gun in the post is not permitted, as every firearm has to be checked by the gardaí to ensure it conforms to standards. In Mr Cooke's case, all firearms are sold in person. I do it all over the counter. I had bad experiences with couriers, so I try not to use them The problem is that the case of Mr Fitzgerald shows that the strict rules that are in place can be circumvented. Mr Fitzgerald didn't have a valid licence himself. Even if he had, it likely would have been revoked given the charges he was facing. However, the shotgun he used was legally held — just not by him. Given that rules can be gotten around, are we somewhat fortunate that incidents such as that which occurred in Carlow don't happen more often? 'It doesn't happen more because the regulations are in place, and there is a lot of process around the system,' says a source. 'Even if someone is involved in say a domestic violence incident, their situation would be reviewed. 'The regulations come down to the wording that only a 'person suitable to hold a firearm' may own one.' Asked about the incident in Carlow, Mr Cooke says 'it is something that shouldn't have happened'. He adds that 'none of us know the true story'. 'If anyone has any marks on their character at all, they won't have a licence. I have gotten calls from gardaí about people asking is there any doubt about them at all. I cannot give anything out, be it firearms or ammunition, you cannot even ask if you don't have a licence,' he says. One aspect of the conversation Mr Cooke objects to is the suggestion that obtaining a gun is the equivalent of acquiring a weapon. 'When someone is looking for a gun, they are looking for a firearm. A hammer is a weapon. We class guns as what they are,' he says. He disputes that people with bad intentions could seek to acquire a gun legally. 'They have to go through all the rigmarole to get a licence, and they have to fit all the criteria,' he says. Not that he has experienced any trouble at his own dealership. 'Absolutely, there has been very little crime. 'When it comes down to it, 99.9% of gunholders in this country are very reliable people,' he says.
