This article is from page 6 of the 2014-05-20 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 6 JPG
A HOME-MADE knife was discovered in the entrance at Ennis Courthouse following a number of scuffles that broke out on Wednesday.
Gardaí are investigating altercations which flared up between members of two families who were present in the courthouse on the day.
A fight between younger members of both families developed at the entrance at around 11am.
The courthouse was busy with sittings of Ennis District Court and the High Court underway.
People standing in the lobby area initially thought the parties were “messing about” but the incident turned serious when a male teenager was knocked to the floor and struck a number of times.
There was a large number of gardaí present inside the district court positioned between the families who were sat at opposite sides of the courtroom.
Men from either side traded verbal insults. At one point, Judge Patrick Durcan said he would adjourn court business if peace was not kept in the courtroom.
Judge Durcan said law and order was not being maintained in the courtroom and said decent citizens who had business in court were being subjected to “vile behaviour”.
Order was restored both inside and outside the courtroom. A number of people were arrested.
The knife was discovered on the floor just inside the front door at around 11.30am.
It is described as home-made, with two short blades sitting on a handle wrapped in red tape.
Gardaí are investigating the incident and are studying CCTV footage taken from cameras in the Courthouse.
The two Ennis families suspected of being involved in the fracas have been engaged in a dispute for much of the past 12 months.
This is the first violent incident to occur in Ennis Courthouse in recent months.
The building was the scene of a spate of similar fights and altercations throughout 2012 and 2013.
Last October Ennis-based solicitor Daragh Hassett told the court there were times during the year when legal practitioners feared for their safety such was the frequency of fights at the time.