Cooley community group make document from Garda Golden public

Garda Tony Golden

A community group in the Cooley Peninsula has made public a document given to them by Garda Tony Golden, who was shot dead earlier this month.

In the handwritten document given to the group in 2013, Gda Golden raised a number of concerns about the lack of police resources in the Dundalk district.

Secretary of the Cooley Peninsula Community Alert Group Gearoid O’Sullivan approached Garda Golden ahead of a meeting with the Minister for Justice to voice the group’s concerns.

The group still has the original document Gda Golden drew up in response.

It decided to put the documents in the public domain, as they were Gda Golden’s concerns for his colleagues and they are now advocating for all gardaí still living.

In it Gda Golden raised concerns about the reduction in Garda manpower and an over reliance on overtime, and his and other gardai’s fears that the overtime that had been made available for the murder investigation into Garda Adrian Donohoe in 2013 would not be continued into 2014.

He also raised concerns about the lack of cover when local gardaí were used to supplement Garda numbers in Dundalk, the district headquarters.

The group met the then minister for justice Alan Shatter in April 2014.

Since the death of Gda Golden, two sergeants and 25 gardaí have been deployed to the Dundalk District, albeit on a temporary transfer, from stations in Cavan/Monaghan and the Dublin Metropolitan Region North.

The document from Garda Tony Golden

High Court refuses release for man who killed Garda in Tallanstown

Sgt Patrick Morrissey RIP

A man who has spent almost three decades in jail for the murder of a Garda sergeant in Tallanstown has lost a High Court action aimed at securing his immediate release from prison.

The action was brought by Michael McHugh, who shot dead Sgt Patrick Morrissey following an armed robbery in Co Louth in 1985.

McHugh, with an address at Clonalig, Crossmaglen, Co Armagh and Noel Callan, formerly of Cullaville, Castleblayney, Co Monaghan were convicted by the non-jury Special Criminal Court in December 1985 of the murder of Sgt Morrissey (49) at Rathbrist, Tallanstown, on June 27th, 1985 following an armed robbery at Ardee Labour Exchange.

Sgt Morrissey was initially wounded by McHugh, before he shot the unarmed garda in the head.

McHugh was initially sentenced to death for the murder. The sentence was commuted to one of 40 years penal servitude by the then president Patrick Hillery, seven days before the execution was scheduled to be carried out.

In proceedings against the Governor of the Prison, the Minister for Justice, the Irish Prison Service and the DPP McHugh claimed when the 25 per cent remission generally granted to incarcerated persons is taken into account he is due for release after 30 years, which he says he has served.

He argued he was not given credit for five months he spent in custody, between July 3rd and December 3rd 1985, before his trial for the garda’s murder concluded and should be released immediately.

In his judgment Mr Justice Paul McDermott dismissed McHugh’s case stating under the separation of powers the court could not compel the Minister for Justice to further commute or remit the sentence.

In this case the commutation of McHugh’s sentence was wholly separate from the judicial process, the judge said.

Unlike the President of Ireland and the Minister for Justice, who have a very wide discretion in such matters, the courts have no function in exercising powers of pardon commutation or remission.

The judge also found there was “no legal basis” for the proposition that a failure by a court or the executive to backdate a sentence imposes an obligation on the Minister to consider or grant a further reduction of a sentence.

The judge said the Minister has the discretion to consider McHugh’s application to be given credit for the five months in custody, but is not obliged to do so.

The Minister was also entitled to take other considerations into account such as “the grievous nature of the offence. when considering such applications.

The judge added there was “no evidence” in this case the Minister’s failure to further commute the sentence by five months could be described as being arbitrary, capricious or irrational.

McHugh has served his sentence at the maximum security Portlaoise Prison, and is due for release in December. However he has a separate, but related action also aimed at securing his release pending before the High Court.

He had sought various orders and declarations including he is entitled to be credited with the time he served in pre-trial custody.

McHugh further claimed the failure to give him credit for those five months he spent in prison amounts to a breach of his rights to natural and constitutional justice.

His application was opposed by the State parties, on grounds including McHugh does not have an automatic entitlement to be given credit for the five months in question. They also argued they do not have the power to take the five months into account as the original court sentence imposed was the death penalty.

Source: The Irish Times

Adams expresses concern at growing crime figures in Louth

Gerry Adams

Local TD Gerry Adams has expressed deep concern at the latest crime figures in the wake of two brutal attacks in Louth.

According to the latest CSO recorded crime figures published, the number of assaults, thefts and burglaries has risen over the past year.

The Sinn Féin president said: “In light of the recent shocking killing of Martin Mulligan near Dundalk and the brutal stabbing of a pharmacy employee in Drogheda, the latest crime figures are very worrying. CSO figures show an increase of assaults of 10.4%, burglaries rising by 8.4%, and theft rising by 1.8%.

“There has been a continuous cutting back of vital resources that the Gardaí require to do their job. I recently called on the Minister for Justice to increase Garda numbers which have fallen over the last five years.

“Recent parliamentary questions to the Minister show that a town as large as Drogheda has only five community Gardaí. There is a direct correlation between these figures and the closure of rural Garda stations and lack of investment in Garda resources.

“Communities right across the country are paying the price for Government policy. The Government must increase investment in Garda personnel and resources to deal with the erosion of public confidence in the Garda’s ability to tackle serious crime.”

Number of Gardaí in Dundalk falls by 12% in last five years

Dundalk Garda Station

The number of Gardaí in Dundalk has fallen by one eighth in the last five years.

That’s according to new figures from the Garda Commissioner, which were provided to local TD Fergus O’Dowd by Minister for Justice Francis Fitzgerald.

The figures show there were 117 Gardaí stationed in Dundalk Garda Station this month, compared with 133 in September 2010 – a drop of 12%.

The number of Gardaí in the Dundalk Garda Division – taking in Blackrock, Carlingford, Dromad, Hackballscross and Omeath – has also fallen by 13.4% during that period.

Blackrock now has four Gardaí compared with five in 2010, while Carlingford has also dropped from six to five, with neighbouring Omeath going from five to four.

The biggest fall has been in Hackballscross, which now has five Gardaí stationed there compared with eight five years ago.

Dromad, meanwhile, remains unchanged with seven Gardaí.

In Mid-Louth, the number of Gardaí in Ardee has fallen from 30 to 26, while in Castlebellingham there is now half the number there was five years ago with two Gardaí as opposed to four in September 2010. Louth continues to have one Garda present.

Dunleer, which is in the Drogheda Garda Division, was the only areas to gain in the last five years with six Gardaí stationed there now compared with five in 2010.

Across the board in Co Louth, the number of Gardaí stationed in the Louth Garda Division has fallen from 318 in September 2010 to 280 this September – a drop of just under 12%.

McKevitt to begin series of temporary releases

Michael McKevitt

Real IRA leader Michael McKevitt is set to begin an ongoing programme of temporary releases within weeks to prepare him for his full release from prison next year after a u-turn on the issue by Minister for Justice Frances Fitzgerald.

The 65-year-old, from Beech Park in Blackrock, is nearing the end of a 20-year sentence and is now scheduled to enjoy a first short period of temporary release, likely for a weekend, by the end of the month.

A spokesman for Ms Fitzgerald said: “It is not the policy nor would it be appropriate for the Department to make any comment regarding the detail of the management of any individual prisoner’s sentence.”

Stephen McKevitt, Michael’s eldest son, said while his father was still not being released from Portlaoise Prison for a prolonged period to recover from having a cancerous kidney removed, the family welcomed the reinstatement of his pre-release programme, which is not linked to his illness.

“After our campaign began to gain some momentum which included the support of a number of TDs, Francis Fitzgerald reinstated the pre-release programme without explanation,” he said of the decision taken last Friday.

“My family is seeking clarity as to why the pre-release programme was revoked in the first place, then reinstated within days and most importantly why my father was returned to prison without even a basic medical assessment.”

McKevitt Snr, who was one of four men found liable for the 1998 Omagh bombing in a civil action taken by relatives of the dead, is serving 20 years for directing terrorism and was also convicted of membership of an illegal organisation.

He was returned to prison last month 5½ weeks after surgery to have a cancerous kidney removed.

His family told The Irish Times last week they believed he needed up to three months recovery at home. They added his being returned to prison on June 22nd came with no warning after three months of release on health grounds and was a political decision rather than a medical one.

They also said that a pre-release programme agreed for him from the present time to the expiry of his sentence next Easter had been cancelled without explanation at the same time he was returned to jail the week before last.

Source: The Irish Times

Former Louth TD Ahern receives over €600,000 in pension and lump sum payments in four years

Former Louth TD and Minister for Justice Dermot Ahern

Former Louth TD and Minister Dermot Ahern has received over €600,000 in pension and lump sum payments over a four year period since retiring from politics in 2011.

Only four other politicians – including former Taoisigh Bertie Ahern and Brian Cowen, Minister for Health Mary Harney and Minister Michael Woods – received more during that time frame.

An RTÉ Investigations Unit report revealed that the Blackrock man received €628,596 between 2011 and 2014.

The bulk of this was in 2011 when he received €281,421. This included a lump sum payment of €165,065, a ministerial pension of €69,243, a TD’s pension of €30,709 and termination lump sums of €16,404.

In 2012 the former Fianna Fáil representative received €119,965, made up of €69,243 from his ministerial pension and €50,722 from his TD’s pension. In 2013 he received €118,848 and last year he received €108,362, made up of €54,758 from his ministerial pension and €53,604 from his TD’s pension.

First elected to the Dáíl in 1987, Ahern had four Ministerial roles in his time in government including in Social, Community and Family Affairs (June 1997 – June 2002), Communications, Marine and Natural Resources (June 2002 – September 2004), Foreign Affairs (September 2004 – May 2008) and Justice and Law Reform (May 2008 – January 2011).

You can view the full figures for all politicians here.

The largest pension pot was paid to the former Taoiseach Bertie Ahern, who according to the figures has received €726,419 in the period between March 2011 and the end of 2014. 

That includes his annual TD pension, which is paid by the Oireachtas, his Ministerial pension, paid by the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform and also lump sum and termination payments, which were made in 2011.

Following Mr Ahern on the list is another former Taoiseach, Fianna Fáil’s Brian Cowen who has been paid €726,367 according to the figures.

McKevitt refused early release from prison following appeal

Michael McKevitt

Dissident Republican Michael McKevitt lost an appeal last week against a High Court judgement refusing him early release from prison.

The 65-year-old, from Beech Park in Blackrock, Co Louth was jailed by the non-jury Special Criminal Court for 20 years in 2003, backdated to 2001, for directing terrorism and for membership of an illegal organization, styling itself as the Real IRA.

With the normal one-quarter remission generally afforded to prisoners, McKevitt is due for release from Portlaoise Prison in July 2016.

McKevitt had applied for a further 8 per cent off his sentence arguing that his participation in structured prison activities, such as art, drama, French, home economics and yoga classes, meant he was less likely to re-offend and was therefore entitled to one-third remission rather than the one-quarter generally afforded to prisoners.

The High Court ruled last year that the Minister for Justice was entitled to refuse McKevitt’s application for one-third remission and he sought to appeal that decision last month.

In a written judgment dismissing his appeal, Ms Justice Mary Irvine said the Minister was entitled “not to close her mind to other relevant and possibly more dominant” material concerning McKevitt’s likelihood to re-offend, including garda advice.

Source: The Irish Times.

38 fewer Gardaí in Louth Division than in 2010, figures reveal

Seamus Kirk TD

Garda numbers in Co Louth have fallen substantially in the last five years.

Local TD Seamus Kirk has learned that there are now 38 fewer Gardaí in the Louth Division since 2010, having put forward a parliamentary question on the matter to Minister for Justice Frances Fitzgerald.

While Dundalk Garda Station hasn’t suffered like elsewhere, many smaller areas throughout the county have.

Commenting on the figures, Deputy Kirk said: “The figures that I have obtained show that Garda resources have been slashed by Fine Gael and Labour since they came to office. There are now 38 fewer Gardai in the Louth Division compared to five years ago.
“Drogheda has seen the most dramatic reduction in numbers with 22 fewer Gardaí being attached to Drogheda Garda Station since 2010. The reduction in manpower has occurred across the county with Ardee, Castlebellingham, Collon, Blackrock, Dromad and Hackballscross all experiencing personnel cutbacks.

“There is a feeling in communities in Louth that crime rates are on the rise. People do not feel as safe as they used to in their own homes. This comes as no surprise considering the cutback in resourcing for the Gardaí that the Government has overseen since coming to office.

“The Government has been attempting to downplay the crime crisis by hiding behind official crime figures. However Fianna Fáil has spent the past three years saying that gaping holes in frontline policing are leading to a spike in crime levels. Every community that I visit identifies rising crime levels as a top concern. It is no coincidence that these feelings are expressed at a time when Garda numbers are falling.

“It is time for the Government to admit that rising crime levels is a serious problem in our communities. Action must be taken to reverse this trend. More resources are needed for our police force, and this includes restoring manpower to Garda stations. The only resourcing initiative that the Government has announced for policing is a small intake of student Gardaí for this year. However it has been highlighted by Garda management that this intake will barely even cover the number of people retiring from the force each year,” said Deputy Kirk.

Special task force proposed to deal with fuel-smuggling

A special task force is needed to combat organised cross-border gangs involved in fuel-smuggling and ‘illicit trade’, say politicians north and south of the border.

Yesterday a committee of Irish and British politicians called for more determined action north and south of the border in a report highlighting the need for more serious penalties, including more lengthy custodial sentences for illicit trade activities, “in order to make the island of Ireland a more difficult place for criminal gangs to operate”.

The British and Irish Political Assembly says it is particularly alarmed by the evidence of the widespread presence of fuel laundering plants and filling stations selling illicit fuel in border regions and further afield.

They says the problem is worst in south Armagh and Monaghan and met with the heads of councils in Monaghan, Donegal and Louth.

The Report stresses that “those involved must not be allowed to continue this illegal activity and every possible effort must be made by law enforcement authorities in their collaborative efforts to shut down these operations, despite the difficulties in policing some of these areas.”

Financial firm Grant Thornton estimated that fuel-laundering alone was worth somewhere between €140-260 million a year in losses to Revenue.

Other recommendations include that stations convicted of selling illegal, laundered, or stretched fuel “cannot simply reopen after a few weeks”, that on-the-spot fines be brought in for consumers knowingly buying illicit goods and more funding for enforcement.

The Chair of Committee A Senator Paul Coghlan says: “Illicit cross-border trade, particularly in fuel and cigarette smuggling, is a huge issue impacting on the lives of citizens and small businesses on both sides of the border.

“This report focuses on how the PSNI and An Garda Síochána, and the Northern Ireland Executive, Irish Government and other law enforcement agencies, work together, particularly in light of the devolution of policing and justice powers and the launch of the Cross-Border Policing Strategy in 2010. The Committee was hugely encouraged by the on-going positive cooperation in this area and believes that its series of practical recommendations, if implemented, can build on this good work,” he said.

Major players in the operation include Minister for Justice and Equality, Frances Fitzgerald TD, Minister for Justice, David Ford MLA, the Garda Commissioner, Nóirín O’Sullivan; the Chief Constable of the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI), George Hamilton; members of An Garda Síochána and the PSNI; the Chief Executives of Monaghan, Louth and Donegal County Councils; Members of the PSNI in Crossmaglen and members of an Garda Síochána in Dundalk; representatives of the Retailers Against Smuggling and the Petrol Retailer’s Association; and from Grant Thornton Ireland who produce an annual report on the fiscal losses incurred as a result of illicit trade.

McKevitt loses prison release bid

Michael McKevitt

Michael McKevitt, who is serving a 20-year sentence for directing terrorism and membership of the Real IRA, has failed in his bid to be released from prison immediately.

McKevitt, from Beech Park in Blackrock, claimed that his participation in structured prison activities entitled him to enhanced one third remission of his prison sentence.

He claimed he was entitled to such remission because he had participated in activities including computer courses, speech and drama, art, French, yoga and an Open University course in creative writing.

Minister for Justice Frances Fitzgerald said she was entitled to refuse him remission taking into account garda views and other matters relating to his risk of reoffending.

Mr Justice Peter Kelly ruled yesterday that participation in structured activities in prison had as its object a reduction in the likelihood of reoffending but he said the minister must be satisfied such an object had been achieved.

Simply because a prisoner engaged in structured activities, he said, that did not mean a reduction in the likelihood of reoffending had automatically been achieved.

He said the minister was entitled to take into account all of the matters before her.

And he said even if one excluded the evidence of gardaí then there was an abundance of other material allowing the minister to reach her decision to refuse to grant him enhanced remission.

He refused to quash her decision and rejected McKevitt’s application.

Source: RTÉ News