Category: News

A MUSICIAN who carried a claw hammer through a busy street in Ennis to ‘frighten people’ has received a suspended prison sentence.

David Cronin (36) was in possession of weapon when he was stopped by gardaí on Abbey Street on May 25, 2013. Mr Cronin appeared before Ennis District Court on Wednesday for sentence.

In January, Mr Cronin, with an address at Apartment 73, Parnell Street, Ennis, pleaded guilty to possession of an offensive weapon contrary to the Firearms and Offensive Weapons Act.

The matter was adjourned to allow for the issue of a suspended sentence imposed by the Circuit Court to be resolved. A Circuit Court Judge did not activate that sentence, the District Court heard on Wednesday.

Inspector Tom Kennedy outlined the facts of the case to Judge Patrick Durcan. He told the court gardaí met Mr Cronin carrying a claw hammer on Abbey Street at around 2.30am on the night in question. He said there were a lot of people in the area because the nightclub was just finishing up.

Insp Kennedy said Mr Cronin did not intend to use the hammer. “He said he had the hammer to cause fright in people,” explained Insp Kennedy. Insp Kennedy said Mr Cronin also told gardaí he had a dream three years ago about putting a hammer through someone’s head. “He was clearly not rational,” added Insp Kennedy.

The court heard the accused has a previous conviction for cannabis cultivation. He has no previous convictions for weapons offences.

Defence solicitor Fiona Hehir said her client was a heavy user of cannabis as a teenager. She said Mr Cronin gave up the drug in the weeks prior to the offence and was suffering “withdrawal symptoms” at the time.

Ms Hehir said that in a Garda interview, her client said he was carrying the hammer to get attention. He said he had the weapon in the same manner a person might wear an offensive tee shirt.

The court heard Mr Cronin is a guitarist who is currently receiving help from a psychologist. He is also seeking to secure a place at the Bushypark addiction treatment centre near Ennis.

“He is seeking help at the moment for his issues,” Ms Hehir said. Judge Durcan said he did not like people who wander around the town of Ennis with claw hammers in their hands trying to frighten people.

He imposed a three-month prison sentence, but suspended it on condition Mr Cronin enter into a bond to be of good behaviour.

Judge Durcan told Mr Cronin it was “totally unacceptable” for him walk around Ennis with an offensive weapon with the intent he did.

A CZECH national has been found guilty of having heroin for sale or supply in Ennis almost two years ago.

At Ennis District Court on Tuesday, Zoltan Parci (20) pleaded guilty to possession of heroin at his home at Dun Na hInse, Lahinch Road, Ennis, in August 2012. However he denied a separate charge of having heroin for sale or supply.

Detective Garda Dominic Regan of Ennis Garda Station told the court that eight wraps, or deals, of heroin were found in a small children’s bag during a search of the accused’s home.

A small amount of cannabis and plastic cut offs were also discovered. He said Mr Parci denied having heroin for sale or supply but admitted smoking the drug.

Det Gda Regan said he has worked with the Clare Divisional Drugs Unit for eight years and that in his opinion; the heroin was bagged for sale.

He said the gram of heroin recovered was worth € 142.

“My opinion would be the quantity is not consistent with personal use,” added Det Regan.

The detective told the court he did not find evidence of heroin use in the house and that the accused did not strike him as a heroin user.

Defence solicitor Tara Godfrey said she was not going into evidence and her client would not be giving evidence.

She said an interpreter may have been required but Mr Parci had instructed her not to seek an adjournment.

She applied to have the charge dismissed, saying none of the paraphernalia normally associated with drug dealing such as weighing scales and tick list were found.

Judge Patrick Durcan said he was satisfied the State has established a prima fascia case against the accused.

“I accordingly proceed to convict your client,” he said.

Mr Parci has no previous convictions except for some road traffic offences, the court heard.

Ms Godfrey said her client, a father of two, started smoking cannabis before moving onto heroin.

She said Mr Parci recently finished a course in computers.

Ms Godfrey asked the court to consider the involvement of the Probation Services or the imposition of a community services order.

Judge Durcan ordered the accused to pay € 150 to the court poor box in respect of the possession charge.

He said he would strike out the charge if the money is paid by September 3. He convicted and fined Mr Parci € 500 for having heroin for sale or supply.

Bridie O’ROURKE (née Callinan)
, Knockagonnell, Inagh. Funeral mass today (Tuesday) at 11amat Inagh Chucrch, followed by burial in the adjoining cemetery. May she rest in peace.

Mary KELLY (née Meade)
, 65 College Green, Ennis. Formerly of Crahera, Kildysart and London. Funeral mass onTuesday at 11amat Ennis Cathedral, followed by interment in Kilchreest Cementery. Family flowers only, donations if desired to Cahercalla Community Hospital. May she rest in peace.

Brendan MCLOUGHLIN
, 10 Girroga Heights, Gort Road, Ennis, (Ex Irish Avation Authority). Laid to rest inTemplemaley Cemetery. May he rest in peace.

Eileen O’BOYLE
, QuiltyWest, Quilty. Suddenly. Laid to rest in Quilty. May she rest in peace.

Kingsmill (KEN) PENNEFATHER
, 91 Cluain Airne, Shannon. Laid to rest in Illaumanagh Cemetery, Shannon. May he rest in peace.

Seán NEYLON
, Drimanure, Kilmaley. Peacefully, at St Joseph’s Hospital, Ennis. Laid to rest in Kilmaley Cemetery. May he rest in peace.

Michael HEHIR
, Church Street, Kilmihil. Laid to rest in Kilmihil. Donations in lieu to the Dialysis Unit, Regional Hospital, Limerick. May he rest in peace.

Mary LERNIHAN (née Reidy)
, Ballinagun, Cree. Peacefully. Laid to rest in LeitrimCemetery. May she rest in peace.

Michael O’BRIEN
, Church Street, Ennistymon, Laid to rest in the Old Cemetery, Ennistymon. Donations, if desired, to the Friends of Ennistymon Hospital. May he rest in peace.

John HARNEY
, Boston,Tubber. Peacefully at the Galway Clinic. Laid to rest in Mungret Cemetery. Donations, if desired, to the Galway Hospice Foundation. May he rest in peace.

Kathleen LENIHAN (née O Dea)
, Coolnahilla O’Callaghan’s Mills and Rathbeg Sixmilebridge, Better known as Cathy, in her 93rd year.Laid to rest in Killuran Cemetery. May she rest in peace.

Sean O’CALLAGHAN
, Carowbane, Knock andWoodroad, Cratloe. Peacefully at Cahercalla Hospice Ennis. Laid to rest in Bunratty Cemetery. Donations if desired to Cahercalla Hospice. May he rest in peace.

Trudy RODGERS (née Mullan)
, Bristol, England and Scariff. Laid to rest in the NewCemetery, Moynoe. Donations, if desired, to the Irish Cancer Society. May she rest in peace.

Yvonne O’GORMAN (née Browne)
,Ardnacrusha. Formerly of Truagh Castle,ArdnaCrusha. Peacefully at Cork University Hospital. Laid to rest at Kilbehenny in Cork. May she rest in peace.

THE heartbroken family of a grandmother who died in a tragic accident outside a shopping centre in Ennis have thanked members of the public who attempted to save her life.

Josephine Lucas (74) died after she was rolled over by her reversing silver Mazda car in the car park of Aldi Shopping Centre on Francis Street on February 23.

Members of the public, including an off duty nurse, off duty fireman and off duty paramedic, were on the scene and attempted to resuscitate.

Ms Lucas, who had been shopping with her two young grandchildren at the time, was pronounced dead at the scene. An inquest into her death yesterday found she died from acute cardio respiratory failure secondary to multiple traumatic chest injuries. A jury of four men and two women at Clare Coroner’s Court returned a verdict of accidental death.

At the end of the hearing, the Lucas family’s solicitor William Cahir said the family were extremely grateful for the efforts of those that tried to help Josephine.

He said the family wanted to extend thanks to all the first responders who helped on the afternoon.

In her deposition to the inquest, Mairead Doohan, an off duty nurse, said she was coming out of Aldi at around 13.33 when she noticed a car reverse and hit a footpath.

She said she saw a body lying on the ground. She said the woman had a cut on her head, had no pulse and was unresponsive.

“She was lifeless,” Ms Doohan explained. Ms Doohan said she performed CPR and tried to create an airway for Ms Lucas to breathe.

Gearoid Blake, an off duty station officer at Ennis Fire Station, was also in the area on the day.

He said he phoned an ambulance and performed chest compressions on Ms Lucas as he awaited the arrival of the emergency services.

Andrew Long, an off duty paramedic, said Ms Lucas was initially unresponsive but started to breathe again following CPR.

Mr Long said he went to get basic resuscitation equipment but when he returned, Ms Lucas had stopped breathing. Garda Niall Cosgrave of Ennis Garda Station said he studied CCTV footage of the area to retrace Ms Lucas’ final moments.

A report by pathologist Dr Elizabeth Mulcahy found that the cause of death was acute cardio respiratory failure secondary to multiple traumatic chest injuries consistent with a road traffic accident.

The jury returned a verdict of accidental death. County Coroner Isobel O’Dea said that a Garda report referred to the incident as a “freak accident”. She extended her sympathies to the Lucas family. She said the difficulties experienced by the family went “beyond description”.

Inspector John O’Sullivan extended sympathies on behalf of the gardaí on this “tragic accident”. The forewoman of the jury also extended the jury’s sympathies.

AN unemployed electrician whom a court heard spent € 700 a week on drugs has been sentenced to 11 months in prison.

Shane Kerin (26) became involved in drug dealing in order to fund his own habits, Ennis District Court heard on Tuesday.

Mr Kerin, with addresses at Connolly Villas, Ennis, and Stonecourt, Ennis, pleaded guilty to multiple drugs offences committed between April and October, 2013.

He pleaded guilty to being in possession of cocaine at Ennis Garda Station on April 9; possession of cannabis for sale or supply at Connolly Villas on April 25 and possession of cannabis and possession of cocaine also at Connolly Villas on April 25;

He further admitted charges of possession of cannabis and possession of cannabis for sale or supply at Gort Road, Ennis on October 13.

He pleaded guilty to a charge of driving without due care or attention

Detective Garda Dominic Regan of Ennis Garda Station explained Mr Kerin drove away from gardaí at speed when they attempted to stop him on the night in question.

The court heard he was eventually halted near the Aughanteeroe hous- ing estate. Mr Kerin pleaded guilty to using a forged prescription at Flynn’s Pharmacy, Gort Road, Ennis, on October 15. The court heard he altered the prescription to include the addition of 90 xanax tablets.

He further admitted a charge of having cocaine for sale or supply at Sandfield Hall, Ennis on October 24.

Defence solicitor John Casey said his client’s father died in tragic circumstances when he was young. He said Mr Kerin left school at 16 but qualified as an electrician. He said Mr Kerin, normally a nice, quite young man, started smoking cannabis before moving onto prescription drugs, cocaine and then heroin.

Mr Casey said his client’s condition deteriorated in recent months.

“He has gone down. And the only way I can describe it is like speaking to someone under water,” Mr Casey explained.

He said a report furnished to the court disclosed that Mr Kerin was spending € 100 a day on drugs.

Judge Patrick Durcan said there was no evidence Mr Kerin had won the Lotto. He said the € 700 had to come from somewhere. Mr Casey said Mr Kerin sold drugs in order to support his habit.

He urged the court to follow the recommendation of the Probation Services and adjourn the matter for three months to allow his client to re-engage with addiction treatment services.

Judge Durcan said he was not impressed that the accused had not engaged fully with the services to take the steps required to deal with his addiction.

Asked for his view on the accused’s situation, Det Gda Regan said Mr Kerin has a “serious heroin addiction”. He said he could not see Mr Kerin’s life improving until he beats the addiction.

Judge Durcan said this was a young man who committed “very serious offences”.

The Judge said that he was not satisfied on the basis of the evidence that Mr Kerin has engaged in any meaningful way with the services.

He said he was not prepared to accept the recommendations of the Probation Services, neither was he compelled by the arguments of the defence.

In sentencing, Jude Durcan also noted the accused was spending € 700 a week on drugs.

He said he was drawn to the conclusion that that burden was in some way borne by society.

He imposed sentences totalling 11 months and fixed recognizance’s in the event Mr Kerin decides to appeal.

A WEST Clare farmer has won rave reviews for developing a tractor that can be operated by remote control, allowing him to farm the land from the comfort of his own home.

Miltown Malbay man Michael Shannon has combined his passion for farming and machinery to develop his remote controlled tractor in what has been a labour of love over many years.

In what has been hailed as an unbelievable feat of engineering, Mr Shannon has taken a tractor that’s over 30 years old, remodelled and modified it so it can operate at the flick of a switch.

Now the 1983 registered Massey Ferguson MF250 is fully operational using a remote control device and can be let loose to work away on his family farm in Miltown Malbay.

It was Michael’s ambition when he gave up being a tractor dealer ten years ago to develop a fully working, reliable remotely operated tractor.

The farmer, along with son Tony, totally overhauled the engine and hydraulic systems as well as painstakingly redoing the wiring to make his dream possible. Not only can it be used remotely and with a human physically sitting on it, it can also run with the use of a Garmin GPS unit.

If a field is digitally mapped, you can let this tractor off by itself and it’ll spread fertilizer using GPS coordinates. “Once it’s set up to go the machine will spread to the required width and then return to the gate and stop in order to be driven home by a human on the road,” Mr Shannon revealed.

A VERDICT of accidental death has been returned at the inquest into the death of a Polish man in Ennis last year. The body of 38-year-old Thomas Nowakowski was found near a speed bump in Tobertascáin on May 15, 2013. The fast food worker had lived in Ireland with his wife for six years. The inquest into his death was opened at Clare County Coroner’s Court in Ennis in May.

A report from State Pathologist, Marie Cassidy found the cause of death was crush injuries to chest and pelvis consistent with a crush under the weight of a car. Acute alcohol intoxication was given as a contributory factor. The inquest resumed yesterday and heard from Henryk Orzeih, a friend of Mr Nowakowski and his wife, Patrycja.

Mr Orzeih said he knew the couple from when they worked in the Old Ground Hotel in Ennis. In his deposition, he said he drove Patrycja to Dublin Airport on the day of the accident as she was flying home to Poland for a holiday.

He said Mr Nowakowski called to his house later that night in a drunken state. The inquest heard the friends sat for three hours drinking coffee before Mr Orzeih drove his friend back to his house at Tober Beag, Toberteascáin, Ennis. He said the last time he saw Mr Nowakowski alive was when he exited from the rear of the car in an agitated state. The inquest heard that Ennis man Kevin Brennan was driving from Toberteascáin towards St Michael’s when he saw Mr Nowakowski lying just off the side of a speed bump.

Mr Brennan said he stopped the car and performed chest compressions on the man who was unresponsive. He said he flagged down a passing car for assistance. The emergency services were called and were soon on the scene.

Sgt Sandra Heelan told the inquest she attended the scene and carried out an investigation into the incident.

A mother of 10, Shirley Doherty, with an address at Tara Lawns, Belcamp, Coolock, Dublin, subsequently came forward admitted she was the driver of a grey Vauxhall Zafira that struck Mr Nowakowski on the night.

The 37 year old was prosecuted in the District Court where she pleaded guilty to being the driver a vehicle that was involved in the occurrence of an injury to one Tomas Nowakowski and failing to give on demand the appropriate information as required. She further admitted failing to stop her car on the night in questions. She received fines totalling € 1,000.

Sgt Heelan was cross examined on her evidence by counsel for the deceased’s wife, Lorcan Connolly BL.

Counsel questioned Sgt Heelan on the position of the body relative to the location of his nearby home. He said Mr Nowakowski was found lying on the side of the opposite to where he lived.

Mr Connolly said there is “internal conflict” in the movements of the deceased between the time he was dropped off by Mr Orzeih and Mr Brennan’s arrival on the scene.

Brendan Condon, Garda PSV Inspector, carried out an inspection of the car. He said the brakes, lights and tyres were not in good overall condition. There was also a defect with the front wipers while signs of other collisions were also visible.

However he said the condition of the brakes was not a significant factor in this incident.

Clare County Coroner Isobel O’Dea suggested to the jury that they return a verdict of accidental death or death by misadventure. After deliberating for three minutes, the jury returned a verdict of accidental death.

Ms O’Dea, the forewoman of the jury and Inspector John O’Sullivan all extended their sympathies to the deceased’s wife, Patrycja, who was present in court.

AN Ennis dog has become an internet star after his owner posted videos of his exploits on social media sites.

Charlie the beagle has attracted thousands of viewers to his own YouTube Channel and Facebook page. The sites were created by Charlie’s owner Daniel Drzewiecki, a Lithuanian man who works at a shop in Ennis.

Daniel and his partner Julia bought Charlie three years ago and started teaching him tricks and tasks.

Charlie formed a special bond with the couple’s daughter, Laura Olivia, who also features in the popular videos.

They began filming their canine companion as he helped them care for her – rocking her cradle back and forth, and even assisting Julia with diaper changing.

A video that shows Charlie bringing toys and household items to the five-month-old baby after accidentally making her cry has attracted hundreds of thousands of views on the video sharing website, YouTube.

Daniel set up a YouTube channel for Charlie last January.

When the couple’s daughter was born, it became a way of sharing videos with family in Lithuania and to collecting footage for Laura Olivia to have when she’s older.

Charlie’s YouTube channel currently has over 20,000 subscribers, and his Facebook page is nearing 13,000 likes. Daniel said he has been blown away by the response to the video.

“I just put it up on YouTube and nothing was happening for a long time but then it started to go up bit by bit,” he explained,

“The number of people looking at it started to grow and all of sudden, it exploded.

“It was shared by a couple of websites and that brought more people to it. It’s been amazing, the number of people that have looked at the videos.”

Last year, the animal loving cou- ple were plagued by pranksters after launching a poster appeal to find their missing pet ferret.

A SPECIAL sitting of Ennis District Court will take place today to deal with alleged drugs offences.

It is the first time the court has sat specifically to deal with alleged offences under the Misuse of Drugs Act.

A total of 69 cases are due to be heard at the District Court, which is due to get underway at 10.30. The cases concern allegations against 34 people some of whom are charged with multiple offences.

In some cases, defendants are facing non-drug related charges.

Pleas of guilty have been entered in many of the cases, while others are due to be contested.

In cases where defendants have pleaded guilty, Judge Patrick Durcan has already ordered the preparation of pre-sentence reports from the Probation Services.

These reports are read and considered by the presiding judge before passing sentence.

The reports often look at a person’s backgrounds and explains the reasons why they may have started using drugs.

The move to hear cases involving a specific category of crime was introduced in Clare this year by the District Court judge for the area, Patrick Durcan.

It is understood that one of the reasons to hear all cases involving drugs offences in one day was to ensure a level of consistency in sentencing, where it applies.

Special hearing days have already been set aside road traffic cases and general crimes such as public order and criminal damage offences.

The move towards specialised hearing days is also an attempt to introduce a greater degree of efficiency into the way criminal cases are heard in the courts in Clare.

LAST Friday’s vote against altering the zoning of 24 acres of land in Clarecastle for the construction of a crematorium was the second time in just four days that councillors voted against crematorium plans, which the council planners had been in favour of.

While planning permission for the Clarecastle crematorium and grave- yard had not yet been granted, the proposed material contravention was the last obstacle in the way of planners issuing a green light for the proposal.

At Monday’s meeting of Clare County Council, councillors decided not to sell land for a crematorium in Shannon, even though the project had been granted permission by the local authority and the council had put the land up for sale earlier this year.

The land, which is located at Illaun- managh in Shannon, was purchased by Clare County Council from Shannon Development in 2002, with planning permission granted for the creation of a crematorium in March of 2009. A proposal to sell the land was opposed by Shannon Cllr Gerry Flynn (Ind) who claimed that the land should be kept in local authority ownership and for the future use of the people of the Shannon area.

Cllrs Flynn’s proposal not the sell the land was then opposed by his neighbouring councillor, PJ Ryan (Ind) from Sixmilebridge, who argued that a Clare businessman should not be prevented from developing a legitimate business on the site.

The vote was held to decide the situation with the councillors voting by 14 votes to 11 to retain the land in council ownership.

The land was granted planning permission in March of 2009, with both the Shannon local area members and a full meeting of Clare County Coun- cil voting to sell the 1.29 acre site to Illaunmanagh Ltd for € 140,000 later that year.

The purchase of land never took place however and in March of last year a second developer, Jim Cranwell, applied for an extension of the planning permission for the crematorium. The land was offered for sale by Clare County Council at this time with Mr Cranwell making an offer of € 140,000 – the same amount offered in 2009.

A BRAZILIAN carer who stole his 79-year-old employer’s credit card to fund a € 3,000 spending spree in Dublin has been sentenced to four days in jail.

Rodrigo Pires (21) stole the card from the home of Hugh Weir at Ballinakilla, Whitegate, on July 12, 2014.

The English language student travelled to Dublin where he used the card to buy flights to Italy, an Apple Mac notebook, and clothes from Brown Thomas, shoes and sunglasses.

Details of the spree were heard at Ennis District Court on Friday. Mr Pires, who is originally from Sao Paulo but was staying at an apartment at Shaun Court, NCR, Dublin, pleaded guilty to one charge of theft and nine charges of deception.

The offences were committed at Whitegate and locations around Dublin city centre on July 12 and July 13. Inspector Tom Kennedy explained Mr Pires came to Dublin to study English on a student visa. He said after completing his studies, the accused decided to move to another county because he was living with Portuguese friends and not getting his opportunity to speak English.

Garda Declan Condon explained that Mr Pires lived with Hugh Weir, an author of books on the environment, and his wife at their home in Whitegate.

He spent five months helping to care for Mr Weir, who suffers from polio. Garda Condon said Mr Pires earned € 100 a week for his work.

Garda Condon said Mr Pires was due to return to Brazil when his visa expired at the end of July.

Instead, he stole Mr Weir’s credit card and travelled to Dublin where he dishonestly by deception with drew sums of cash from AIB bank. He bought flight tickets from Aer Lingus and Easy Jet, sunglasses worth € 229 and clothes and shoes from stores such Schuh, Top Man and Brown Thomas.

Gardaí arrested the accused at Dublin Airport after the bank notified Mr Weir his card was being used in various locations in Dublin.

The court heard most of the goods were recovered but Mr Weir is still owed € 1,531. Mr Pires has no previous convictions.

Defence solicitor Stiofán Fitzpatrick said his client was ashamed of what he had done.

“He decided to do it in the spur of the moment. He saw the opportunity and he took it,” added Mr Fitzpatrick.

Judge Patrick Durcan said, “This is a very serious matter.” He sentenced Mr Pires to 90 days in prison but suspended the final 86 days, meaning the accused had to spend four days in prison.

Judge Durcan ordered that Mr Pires agree to leave Ireland on his release and not return for five years.