Month: June 2012

A MAN who a Judge said “created mayhem” in a public house in Quin has received a six-month prison sentence.

Kalem Wilkie (23) with an address at 126 Kilnasoolagh Park, Newmarket on Fergus appeared at Ennis District Court on Wednesday.

He pleaded guilty to provoking a breach of the peace and causing criminal damage at the Monk’s Well Pub in Quin on March 3 (2012).

He also pleaded guilty to a charge of criminal damage arising out of an incident at Kilnasoolagh Park on May 8 (2011).

Inspector Tom Kennedy told the court that Mr Wilkie had been drinking with friends in the Monk’s Well when a dispute broke out in the smoking area of the pub. He said the accused was intoxicated and became involved in a row.

The Gardaí were called after a window was broken, the court heard.

Insp Kennedy said an ambulance was also called as Mr Wilkie had cut his hand. He said the accused refused to leave with the ambulance and was subsequently detained in a garda car.

Insp Kennedy told the court that Mr Wilkie broke a door panel of a house in Kilnasoolagh Park using a pitchfork between 5pm and 6pm on May 8 (2011).

He said there had been issue between Mr Wilkie and the occupier of the house prior to the incident.

He added, “Mr Wilkie got possession of a pitchfork and took revenge on the door.”

Referring to the incident in Newmarket on Fergus, solicitor Thomas Kiely said there had been a row between his client and his then partner.

He said Mr Wilkie had been intoxicated on the day and had since paid 150 euros compensation for the damage.

In relation to the incident at the Monk’s Well, Mr Kiely said his client had taken a number of tablets along with alcohol. He said Mr Wilkie was sorry for the inconvenience he had caused to staff, gardaí and ambulance personnel.

Mr Kiely said his client wished to pay compensation.

The court heard that the accused has 21 previous convictions.

Judge Patrick Durcan said Mr Wilkie had “created mayhem” in the Monk’s Well and had abused gardaí and wasted the time of the State.

He continued; “All of the organs of the State were called to deal with this drunken bowsy on the date in question.”

He imposed prison sentences totaling six months and fined Mr Wilkie 200 euros.

Recogances were fixed in the event of appeals.

Judge Durcan added; “The day is gone when people can wander around the county of Clare with pitchforks, going into pubs tanked up and putting their elbow through windows.”

TWO Dublin people found in possession of a stolen caravan near Newmarket on Fergus have appeared in court.

Owen McDonagh (23) and Rita McDonagh (21), both of 6 Shelly Park, Dunsink Lane, Dublin 11 are charged with handling stolen property a – Tabbert Vivaldi caravan knowing the property was stolen or were reckless as to whether it was stolen at Latoon, Newmarket on Fergus on May 30 (2012).

Inspector Tom Kennedy told the court that it would be alleged that the McDonagh’s were found in possession of a caravan at 6.15am.

He said the caravan had been stolen from Spanish Point at around 2.30am.

He said the property was recovered.

He said the DPP had directed summary disposal of the case.

Judge Patrick Durcan accepted jurisdiction and adjourned the case until July 24 for hearing.

THE Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) is expected to issue directions later this month in respect of incidents alleged to have occurred at a primary school in Ennis earlier this year, a court has heard.

Inspector Tom Kennedy told Ennis District Court on Wednesday that Gardaí were in the process of responding to further queries from the DPP in relation to alleged offences at and outside Holy Family junior school, Ennis on March 20.

Three people – Conor Mahon (21), Rose Mahon (22) and Laura Molloy (21) – are facing charges arising out of the incident.

Conor Mahon, of Ballaghboy, Quin Road, Ennis is charged with possession of a slash hook at the school contrary to the firearms and offensive weapons act and with engaging in threatening and, or, abusive behaviour.

Conor Mahon’s wife, Rose Mahon, also of Ballaghboy Quin Road, Ennis, is charged with causing 1500 euros worth of damage to the windows of a vehicle on Station Road.

Her sister, Laura Molloy, of 21 An Pairc, Bruach na hAbhainn, Ennis is also charged with causing 1500 euros worth of damage to the windows of a vehicle on Station Road. Both sisters are also charged with provoking a breach of the peace.

Solicitor Daragh Hassett consented to Insp Kennedy’s application for a 14-day extension for DPP’s directions.

All three were remanded on continuing bail to appear again in court on June 20.

COMPUTER users have been warned about a new electronic scam that targets people’s personal bank details.

Gardaí in Ennis have issued the warning after receiving a number of calls from concerned computer owners.

Sgt Joe Downey, Crime Prevention Officer, explained that in recent weeks people have received telephone calls indicating that their computers have viruses and then directing them to various websites.

The caller directs the person to input certain data and what is actually happening unknown to the person is that they are uploading a virus, which corrupts their computer.

The caller now has control of the person’s computer and is able to access personal information, especially information relating to bank account details.

Computer owners are being told to ignore these calls. The gardaí have issued the following advice to computer users: “Please do not accept this call and under no circumstances should you input data as directed by the caller. Hang up and ignore the caller, as legitimate computer companies do not operate in this manner.” 30/06/2012

THE HSE have had difficulty filling nursing posts in the mid-west area which includes counties Clare, Limerick and Tipperary.

That is according to Regional Director of Operations, HSE West, John Hennessy who was responding to criticism that retired staff continue to be employed within the HSE on a part-time basis.

Mr Hennessy maintained that staff were only re-employed in certain circumstances and for a short period of time. He added, “When we had permanent nursing posts in the mid-west we had difficulty finding someone to take up the post.”

Clare County Councillor Tom McNamara (FF) criticised the HSE for its re-hiring practices.

“There are people working in the HSE that have retired in the last five years taking posts that could be filled by young graduates,” he said.

“This [practice] is forcing young people out of the country, while these people’s pensions are not touched because they can work a day or two to bring them up to their former wage before it is touched.”

He proposed that the HSE take new people into the health service on a 12-month contract instead to cover any gaps in the system.

Francis Rogers, Assistant National Director of Human Resources, said it was HSE policy not to rehire people on pensions.

“In circumstances where we found ourselves having to re-hire pensioners it was only in extreme circumstances where we do this. This would also be for a very short period and only where a very specific specialist was needed,” he said.

“There is no financial gain in this to the pensioner. During this period their pension is abated. It is an issue we very carefully monitor.”

This week Fine Gael Senator Tony Mulcahy proposed that selective redundancy be used in the public sector. “The problem is we are losing people we want to keep and we are keeping people we probably need to lose. We really are going to have to get the unions engaged on that and be supportive of that. I am 100 per cent supportive of the Croke Park Agreement because in fairness they [public sector staff] are working very hard,” he told The Clare People .

“But like everything else there is dead weight in a lot of organisations that has to be picked out and say no you don’t serve a purpose anymore and you are not doing what we need you to do and those are areas we have to tackle.”

A LEGAL case involving a thirdlevel student from Ballyvaughan will be appealed to the Supreme Court later this year, in a test case which could see full maintenance grants restored to thousands of students in Ireland.

The Union of Students in Ireland (USI) confirmed last week that they have decided to appeal the case taken on behalf of Medb McCarthy, from Murtyclough, outside Ballyvaughan, after receiving advice from their legal team.

Medb, along with other students Robert Johnson from Monaghan and Iesha Rowan from Oranmore in Galway, are fighting to restore their non-adjacent grants, which were removed following changes in the Department of Education criteria which came into effect in September.

The Student Services Act increases the distance that a non-adjacent student would have to live away from the educational institution from 24 kilometres to 45 kilometres. According to the Minister for Education, Ruairi Quinn (LAB), this change was introduced to reflect the improved public transport and general transport infrastructure in the country in recent years.

Under the new rules, Mebh, who is a third-year Arts student at NUI, Galway, would be considered to live “adjacent” to the university – in an area where commuting each day would be possible.

With no effective public transport in place in the North Clare area, Mebh will not be able to reach Galway City for college each day until after 11am. Despite working to support herself during her time in college, she is not in a position to make up the shortfall in the grants payment.

Mebh is currently in receipt of a grant of between € 6,100 and € 6,700 per year to go towards rented accommodation and maintenance while she studies in NUI, Galway. If the decision is not reversed, it will lead to a loss of between € 2,440 to € 3,900 towards her maintenance in college next year.

The case is being seen as a test case by hundreds of students in Clare who will have their grants reduced if the new system is enforced.

An initial legal challenge was heard in February of this year, with Mr Justice John Hedigan reserving his judgement for more than six weeks while he considered the arguments made.

When the judgement was released in April, Justice Hedigan ruled that grants cuts were in the public interest given the dire financial circumstances facing the country. However, Vice President of the USI, Conor Murphy, confirmed last week that the students organisation would be appealing the decision.

ONE Clare TD has described the resounding acceptance of the Fiscal Stability Treaty in Clare as the “least bad option”.

Labour TD Michael McNamara said, “It has been a difficult decision for many people, myself included, but I’m glad that clarity has been brought to the situation. The people of Ireland and Clare have provided a decisive result that will reinforce the Govern- ment’s efforts to work our way through the Eurozone crisis with greater urgency with our EU partners. We need to press ahead with the growth agenda and to work hard on getting a deal on the bank debt.Passing the referendum is not a solution to our problems. In many ways, it can be described as the least bad option,” he said.

Fine Gael’s Joe Carey maintained, “There was a very clear message that we had to pass this referendum in the interest of our country so we would have certainty going forward.”

The Clare TD was Fine Gael Director of Elections for North Munster and he was happy to see a lot of young people involved in the campaign. “It was encouraging to see so many young people getting involved in this campaign. I think they viewed it as their future. They wanted to make sure a yes vote was returned in their interest because it is really about putting our country first,” he said.

Senator Tony Mulcahy (FG) said he was arguing for the referendum from a business point of view and he believed being able to borrow at a reasonable rate is key to the future of industry. “At the end of the day, the people have spoken and said let’s steady the ship and keep the whole thing going,” he said.

Deputy Pat Breen (FG) said, “I know from speaking to people during the course of this campaign that they were very much aware of the importance of passing this treaty in terms of Ireland’s future role in the European Union. The fact that the Irish people are set to endorse the treaty is already receiving a very positive reaction all over the world. I have received quite a number of calls from colleagues throughout Europe congratulating us on the result. The fact that we were the only country in the EU to hold a referendum and that as a country we have taken the lead in support of the treaty will, I have no doubt, pay dividends into the future with foreign direct investment continuing to flow into this country. It will also strengthen our Government’s hands in future discussions at EU level,” he added.

THE voter turn-out for the Stability Referendum last week was the lowest in the county in almost a decade.

Campaigners from all sides said they were disappointed with the 49.8 per cent turn-out in Clare, which was just short of the national average. However, the large number of people staying at home at the time of a referendum is not unusual in Clare’s recent history.

Just 30.83 per cent of the electorate in Clare turned out in June 2001 to vote on the first Nice referendum, the abolition of the death penalty and the criminal courts referendum.

This was a huge drop from the previous referendum of June 1999 when 60.05 per cent of the Clare electorate turned out to vote for ‘Recognition for Local Government’.

In March 2002, just 39.29 per cent of the Clare electorate turned out to vote on the Protection of Human Life in Pregnancy, with 47.05 per cent voting on Nice 2 that October.

The largest turn out for a referen dum in recent years in Clare was in June 2004, when 64.6 per cent voted on the Citizenship.

From then until last Thursday, the turn-out remained over 50 per cent in the Banner county, with 52.48 per cent voting on Lisbon 1 in June 2008, 56.9 per cent voting on the second Lisbon referendum in October 2009, while 56.12 per cent voted on the House of the Oireachtais Inquiries and 57.95 per cent on Judges Remu- neration during the Presidential election in October 2011.

Last week’s drop below 50 per cent was a disappointment to the majority of people involved in the campaign. Some blamed referendum fatigue, others a lack of knowledge on the subject.

“An element of referendum fatigue was built into the turn-out. I was disappointed that more people didn’t choose to vote but it is the norm for referendums that you don’t have a large turn-out,” said Fine Gael TD Joe Carey.

Fine Gael Senator Tony Mulcahy said he believed the low turn-out was due to frustration and annoyance among people. There was also an element of “people not understanding it” he maintained.

SHORTLY after the ballot boxes opened on Friday morning, it was clear that the people of Clare had voted overwhelmingly to accept the Stability Treaty, and there were few if any protest votes among those tallied.

At 2.09pm, Clare’s Returning Officer Patrick Wallace announced that the people of Clare had resoundingly accepted the treaty.

As many as 26,121 people, or 65.7 per cent of the poll, had voted yes the previous day, while 13,613 or 34.3 per cent had voted no. Less than half a per cent of the votes were spoilt.

While the turnout was low, there also appeared to be no orchestrated protest vote against the Government.

Even in areas like Parteen, who are concerned about the proposed Limerick Northern distributory road cutting through their village, there seemed to have been no orchestrated protest vote. The Parteen ballot box opened in Clare showed a tally of 130 for, with 72 against. The second Parteen box was opened as part of the Limerick City constituency.

There was a slight swing towards the no camp in Shannon Town but the yes vote still won the day.

In the Shannon Electoral area, an estimated 61 per cent of voters voted for the treaty, with 39 per cent voting against. According to the tallies, there was one “no box” in Shannon Town. However, the tallymen and women missed a box and a half of votes from St Aidan’s School Ballycasey. It was estimated that the town voted 54 per cent in favour of the treaty and 46 per cent against, which made it the lowest yes vote in the county.

In total, the joint tally between Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil accounted for 78 per cent of the boxes. Despite missing a few boxes, the tally was still within one per cent of the overall result, predicting a yes vote of 64.8 per cent.

The north Clare area was the biggest supporter of the treaty, according to the tallies. As many as 67.8 per cent of people in the Ennistymon Electoral Area voted in favour of the treaty, with both Ennis electoral areas returning a joint yes vote of 66 per cent.

Kilrush Electoral Area returned a yes vote of 65.5 per cent, with Killaloe Electoral Area supporting the treaty by 64.73 per cent.

Shannon Electoral Area had the lowest yes vote, but still voted in favour of the referendum by a margin of 61 per cent to 39 per cent.

AN Bord Pleanála are due to deliver a decision on a controversial € 34 million retail park on the outskirts of Ennis next Monday.

In January, Ennis Town Council refused planning permission for a proposed retail development at the Clare Road / Tobertascáin.

Michael Lynch Ltd had sought permission for the (1) Demolition of all structures on site including five residential units, office block and all ancillary buildings; (2) Provision of a public plaza fronting on to the Limerick Road including both soft and hard landscaping; (3) A retail development including a food store incorporating customer restaurant and cafe, off licence sales area, dot com area and storage service area; (4) Separate ancillary two-storey retail and office blocks, a standalone two-storey office block, 610 parking spaces, provision for cycle parking, trolley bays and vehicular access to and from the Tobarteascain Road.

The developers had said the project would create 300 jobs in construction and between 180 and 200 per- manent jobs.

However, objectors, including town centre businesses, argued that the development would have a “significantly detrimental effect on town centre retail” and lead to a “decreased viability of the town centre”.

Residents on the Clare Road also fear that the proposed retail development will have an adverse impact on flooding in the area.

An engineering planning report prepared on behalf of Michael Lynch Ltd states that the site would be developed in a sustainable manner “in order to minimise the impact of the development during construction and throughout the lifespan of the proposed store”.

In its decision, the council deemed that the proposal is premature pending the upgrade of the wastewater treatment plant at Clareabbey and pending the implementation of the Ennis South Flood Relief Scheme.

The council also cited changes in the Planning and Development Act 2010.

The decision was subsequently appealed to An Bord Pleanála. The Board are expected to make a decision on June 10.

Gerard DAVOREN
of Griffith Ave, Dublin and late of Caherconnell, Kilfenora. Peacefully. Laid to rest in Kilcorney Cemetery. Donations in lieu to St Michael’s House. May he rest in peace.

Eamon MOLONEY
of McNamara Park, Ennis. Suddenly. Privately cremated. Donations, if desired, to the Irish Cancer Society. May he rest in peace. May he rest in peace.

Flan CUNNINGHAM
of Quilty East Quilty. Suddenly. Laid to rest in Mullagh Cemetery. Donations, if desired, toThe Irish Heart Foundation. May he rest in peace.

Tom LILLIS
of Killofin, Labasheeda. Laid to rest in Killofin Cemetery. May he rest in peace.

William SHAW
of 1 Collins Park, Shannon. Late of Castleconnell, Co. Limerick. Laid to rest in Lemanagh Cemetery. May he rest in peace.

Mary MOORE
of Dromindoora, Caher. Formerly of Killeaney, Maynooth and Carbury, Co. Kildare. Laid to rest in Killanena. Donations, if desired, to Cahercalla Hospice. May she rest in peace.

Pat DUGGAN
of Corry Lane, Kilkee. Suddenly, at his home. Laid to rest in Lisdeen Cemetery. May he rest in peace.

Anthony HEGARTY
of Crowhill Newmarket-on-Fergus.After a short illness. Laid to rest in Lemenagh Cemetery. House private please. May he rest in peace.

Eileen O’REILLY (née Markham)
of Castlefergus, Quin. Funeral Mass at St Bricken’s Church, Doora onTuesday at 11am. Burial afterwards in the Church grounds. May she rest in peace.