I was listening to the Sean O’Rourke programme on the radio recently, and I heard Paddy O’Gorman reporting on a visit he made to the District Court in Portlaoise. He interviewed some people who were due to appear before the judge that day and he asked them what they had done to find themselves in that position.
One guy was charged with handling stolen property after being found with two stolen chain saws in his car. They had been taken earlier from a farm. He thought it was very amusing, and so did his friends, as he told Paddy that he was innocent. He said he was just passing the farm when two guys appeared from nowhere and threw the chain saws into his car.
It was great fun altogether and he suspected that even though he was innocent, he was probably going to get three months or so in jail. He was the father of six children and Paddy asked him if he was worried about going to prison and it was obvious that he didn’t give two hoots. He’d been there before, and he couldn’t care less. Himself and his buddies were enjoying the craic.
His solicitor relayed this ridiculous tale to the judge and asked her to consider a non-custodial sentence. The judge said she would consider it, if the defendant told the truth. When he returned to the witness box, he changed his story and admitted stealing the chain saws. The judge ordered him to pay €500 to the farmer and sentenced him to 250 hours community service.
That’s why the chain-saw thief was having the craic. He knows the system and he wasn’t the least bit afraid of it because he knew he wasn’t going to come out of it too badly, even with his list of previous convictions. That’s why he’s happy to travel the countryside and steal from farmers because the benefits outweigh the risk.
The judge in this case has done nothing to alleviate the fear that rural communities are experiencing because of travelling criminals. The farmer had his privacy violated and his property stolen. He’s probably a hard-working man trying to make ends meet which is tough enough without having to worry about thieves robbing the tools of his trade. The theft of tools from farmers and tradesmen is big business these days.
We don’t know what effect this crime had on the farmer or his family or indeed, the wider community, but it’s the kind of thing that spreads fear amongst the locals. One way to tackle it is for the courts to send out a strong message that there are serious consequences for criminality. That’s not happening though.
The thief in this case had a list of previous convictions and I can’t understand why he was entitled to any leniency. He spun an outrageous story to the judge about two guys throwing the chain saws into his car. He lied through his teeth but then she then gave him the opportunity to tell the truth for a reward and he took it. What did he do to deserve that break?
He said he was sorry and walked out of the courthouse, laughing again and why wouldn’t he? He is an experienced criminal and he has rightly copped on to the notion that the criminal justice system is just as broken as the health system and the housing crisis. There’s money to be made from stealing and he’s operating on a risk and reward basis and the odds are stacked in his favour.
There’s a reduced garda presence in rural communities now, more than ever before, so there is less chance of the criminal getting caught. If the gardai do manage to catch up with him, they must gather evidence and put a case together to get him into court. But even if they do manage to get him before a judge, he still stands a good chance of getting off with a slap on the wrist. A gentle one at that.
This guy has treated the whole legal process as a complete joke and it’s no surprise that he did.
On the same day that I was listening to Paddy, I also heard of a guy who was convicted in the Special Criminal Court for assisting a criminal organisation in the murder of a Dublin bar manager who was shot seven times by a masked gunman.
The hero in this case pleaded guilty to participating in or contributing to activity intending to facilitate the commission, by a criminal organisation or any of its members, of a serious offence, namely the murder of the bar manager. He is the first person to be prosecuted for this offence under the organised crime legislation brought in in 2006.
The gardai did well to locate a phone beside the getaway car that was abandoned after the murder and they identified the defendant buying the phone two days before the shooting.
The judge said that while the provision of any assistance to a criminal organisation is a grave matter, the defendant did not approach this in a covert or disguised manner. “His unsophisticated approach left him open to identification and demonstrated an absence of calculation or guile.” In other words, he wasn’t much of a criminal and didn’t cover his tracks very well and got caught as a result.
The judge was satisfied that it must have been apparent to him that he was assisting in some serious criminal activity. Yet, while the maximum sentence is 15 years in prison, he was sentenced to three years and nine months with one year suspended. He’ll be walking the streets again shortly, but the victim is dead.
These decisions won’t exactly have the criminals in this country shaking in their boots.
Hi once again Trevor my friend,
Another very good article. Sadly once again this highlights as you quite rightly say, the complete and utter breakdown of the criminal justice system in the country. In fact I doubt it ever was ” unbroken ”
Insurance premiums are skyrocketing for these poor victims too.
I have always said the Law is there purely to PROTECT the GUILTY.
When oh when will we wake up and get sense?
Don’t hold your breath Paddy.