Court archive
Court reports mentioning Kilkee, Clare
2024-03-21 · Clare
In March 2024, the Central Criminal Court activated the suspended one‑year portion of Robbie Walsh's eight‑year manslaughter sentence after he attacked Martin Burke and threatened to kill him on 25 July 2023, just months after his release from prison. Walsh, 28, had been found not guilty of murder but guilty of the manslaughter of Karl "Gobbo" Haugh, 25, in 2019. He had served five years and eight months of his sentence and was released on 23 March 2023. On 28 February 2024, Walsh was sentenced to 15 months for assault, a threat to kill and criminal damage. The judge, citing Walsh's history of serious offending and the violence involved, imposed the full 12‑month suspended term to commence after the expiry of the 15‑month sentence. The court noted that the offences occurred within months of his release.
2022-07-15 · Dublin
Daniel Belling, a 49‑year‑old German national living in Dublin, was sentenced in his absence in Italy to a three‑and‑a‑half‑year suspended term for one count of dishonestly inducing the Bank of Ireland to grant a €112,500 mortgage on 13 March 2014. He used falsified documents—including a German ID card with an incorrect birth date, overstated payslips, altered bank statements and a P60—to apply for loans between 1 July 2013 and 27 January 2015. The court described the offence as a "classic white‑collar crime" and noted Belling's wife, missing since 2017, was alleged to have driven the scheme. Belling pleaded guilty, exercised his right to silence in 2018, and has no prior convictions. He is a primary carer for his two sons, aged nine and ten, and has been unemployed since 2017. The judge fully suspended the sentence, deciding not to imprison him.
2019-04-08 · Clare
A 23‑year‑old drug addict, Robbie Walsh, was sentenced to eight years' imprisonment with one year suspended for manslaughter after stabbing Karl "Gobbo" Haugh in the back during a row at Marion Estate, Kilkee, in August 2017. The court found that Walsh had not brought a knife to the scene; the knife used was taken from a kitchen block belonging to Haugh's friend. Walsh pleaded guilty to manslaughter and had previously been convicted of drug‑related offences. The judge noted his cooperation with Gardaí and his remorse, and reduced the headline sentence from ten to eight years. The suspended year was to run for three years, back‑dated to the date of his arrest. The sentence was imposed at the Central Criminal Court, with the judge urging Walsh to attend addiction and counselling services while in custody. Robbie Walsh pleaded not guilty and was acquitted.
2019-03-25 · Clare
In a Central Criminal Court hearing, Bridget Haugh, mother of Karl Haugh, delivered a victim impact statement after her son was stabbed in the back by Robbie Walsh. Haugh, who had previously lost her daughter Stacey in a car crash, described the emotional toll of losing her children and the memory of her son's life. The court had earlier found Walsh, 23, not guilty of murder but guilty of manslaughter of Karl Haugh, 25, on a unanimous verdict. Deputy State Pathologist Dr Michael Curtis testified that Haugh died from a single stab wound puncturing his lung. The hearing also covered Walsh's prior convictions, his remorse, and the judge's decision to remand him in custody until sentencing on April 8. The judge expressed sympathy for the Haugh family and noted the profound loss they endured. Robbie Walsh was acquitted.
2019-02-13 · Clare
A Clare man, Robbie Walsh, 23, was acquitted of murder but found guilty of manslaughter after stabbing Karl "Gobbo" Haugh, 25, at Marian Estate, Kilkee, on 6 August 2017. The jury, after more than three hours, returned a unanimous verdict of not guilty of murder and guilty of manslaughter. Judge Carmel Stewart explained that a guilty verdict requires proof beyond reasonable doubt that the accused intended to kill or cause serious harm, and that if the intention was primarily self‑defence, the killing would be manslaughter. Walsh admitted to stabbing Haugh in the back, claiming he had no intention to kill and that he had only wanted to smash a few windows. He was remanded in custody pending sentencing. The trial included testimony from Walsh's Garda interviews, witness accounts of the fight, and medical evidence that Haugh died from a single stab wound puncturing his lung and causing massive bleeding.
2019-02-12 · Clare
In the murder trial of Robbie Walsh, a 23‑year‑old Clare man, the jury was instructed by Ms Justice Carmel Stewart to consider the case from Walsh's perspective, assessing whether he believed he was under threat and whether his use of force was justified. The judge reminded jurors that a person in self‑defence may act impulsively and that excessive force would not be reasonable. Walsh, who pleaded not guilty, admitted in a garda interview that he had killed Karl "Gobbo" Haugh, a 25‑year‑old, after a confrontation at Marian Estate. He described picking up a dropped knife and stabbing Haugh in the back, which caused a fatal lung puncture. The jury was sent home for the night and was to resume deliberations the following day. The trial is ongoing.
2019-02-11 · Clare
In a murder case heard at the Central Criminal Court, Robbie Walsh, aged 23, pleaded not guilty to the killing of Karl 'Gobble' Haugh, aged 25, who died after being stabbed on August 6, 2017, at the Marian Estate in Kilkee. The prosecution, led by Patrick Gageby SC, argued that the Walsh men, including Robbie's cousins Mitchell and Clinton, had intended to vandalise Haugh's car and that the stabbing was not justified. They cited evidence of a prior altercation, video of Robbie claiming he was dragged and then stabbed Haugh in self‑defence, and witness statements suggesting a hostile environment. The defence, represented by Brendan Grehan SC, contended that Robbie was not an aggressor but was pulled into the confrontation, acting in a life‑or‑death situation. The jury was instructed on the case by Ms Justice Carmel Stewart, with the trial to resume the following day.
2019-02-08 · Clare
Robbie Walsh, aged 23, pleaded not guilty to the murder of Karl 'Gobble' Haugh, aged 25, in Kilkee on 6 August 2017. In his fourth Garda interview, Walsh admitted killing Haugh after a confrontation that began with vandalising Haugh's car. He described using a metal bar to smash the car's windows, then being grabbed by Haugh, dropping the bar but retaining a knife, and stabbing Haugh in the back. Walsh claimed he had no intention to kill and that the incident escalated unexpectedly. He also recounted that his house was attacked hours later and that he had sent a Facebook message to a friend saying Haugh had been stabbed in the lung. The case is before Ms Justice Carmel Stewart with a jury of seven men and four women. The trial is ongoing.
2019-02-07 · Clare
In a 2019 trial, 23‑year‑old Robbie Walsh of Kilrush, Co. Clare, pleaded not guilty to the murder of 25‑year‑old Karl Haugh in Kilkee. The Central Criminal Court heard that the alleged killing followed a confrontation at Haugh's house after a phone argument. Gardaí reported that Walsh and his cousins had vandalised a Volkswagen Passat, then went to Haugh's house to buy cocaine. Walsh claimed Haugh had a knife, was attacked, and that he stabbed Haugh in the back after Haugh dropped the knife. Walsh told the garda he had no intention to kill and that he had not brought a knife. He later surrendered after seeing a Facebook post about Haugh's death. The trial was set to continue before Justice Marie Baker and a jury.
2019-02-06 · Clare
In a murder trial in Kilkee, Kilkee, County Clare, Robbie Walsh, aged 23, pleaded not guilty to the killing of Karl Haugh, aged 25, on 6 August 2017. Witness Sam Lucey, Haugh's cousin, testified that he and Haugh confronted Walsh and two cousins near Haugh's house after a heated phone argument. Lucey claimed he had taken a golf club each and a knife from his kitchen, which fell out of his pocket when a Walsh approached with a metal bar. He denied that Haugh had a knife or that the knife came from the same set of knives seized by Gardaí. Under cross‑examination, Lucey admitted the fatal knife was from his kitchen and that he did not know who stabbed Haugh. Conor Murphy, a member of the group, said he saw the Walshs approaching "roaring and shouting" and that he did not see Walsh with a knife.
2019-02-05 · Limerick
During the murder trial of Robbie Walsh, a 23‑year‑old, the court heard that Karl Haugh, 25, had been admitted to Limerick University Hospital with a chest stab wound and was initially stable, sitting up and reassuring his family that he would be fine. An "unexpected chain of events" led to his condition deteriorating; he became unstable, required surgery, and was pronounced dead at 5.20 am after about an hour of resuscitation. The surgeon explained that Haugh had a leak of air into his left chest cavity and was in shock; a blood clot may have formed, causing a sudden bleed that could not be controlled. Witnesses described a brief fight at the Walsh estate, during which Haugh was stabbed, and the accused's cousins were present. The trial continues before Justice Carmel Stewart and a jury. Robbie Walsh pleaded not guilty. Karl Haugh pleaded not guilty.
2019-02-04 · Clare
In a Central Criminal Court hearing, 28‑year‑old Robbie Walsh of Island View, Kilrush, pleaded not guilty to the murder of 25‑year‑old Karl Haugh, nicknamed Gobble, who was killed on 6 August 2017 at the Marian Estate in Kilkee. Prosecutor Patrick Gageby SC presented a narrative that on the Saturday of the August Bank Holiday, Walsh and his cousins Mitchell and Clinton were socialising in Kilkee. Phone calls recorded between the cousins and Haugh suggested a hostile encounter. Gageby alleged that after a brief altercation involving a vandalised Passat, Walsh stabbed Haugh in the back with a knife, causing a single penetrating wound that sliced a rib and lung, leading to Haugh's death at University Hospital Limerick. Walsh was arrested the next day, freely admitted the stabbing and expressed remorse. The trial, before Justice Carmel Stewart, continues with a jury of five women and seven men.
2018-06-07 · Clare
Felicity O'Kelly, wife of Circuit Court judge Eugene O'Kelly, has filed a lawsuit in the High Court alleging that farmer John Brew of Tarmon, Kilkee, has been trespassing on her property, specifically the site of a former creamery at Termon West, Kilkee, which she owns in her sole name. O'Kelly claims Brew has left cattle on the disputed land, causing them to wander onto the main road, and that he has installed fencing and a lock on a gate to her property. She seeks an injunction to prevent further trespassing, to remove any fencing, locks, and animals from the land, and for damages. The High Court, on an ex‑parte basis, granted O'Kelly permission to serve short notice of the proceedings and adjourned the case to a June hearing. The matter, normally a Circuit Court case, is being heard in the High Court because Judge O'Kelly sits on that division of the courts.
2017-12-18 · Clare
A 22‑year‑old Clare man, Robbie Walsh of Island View, Kilrush, is charged with murdering 25‑year‑old Karl Haugh at the Marian Estate in Kilkee on 6 August. Mr Justice Patrick McCarthy has set the trial for 22 October 2018 before a Central Criminal Court jury.
2015-05-15 · Clare
Patrick Barry, an 81‑year‑old former primary school principal from Kilkee, was convicted of indecent assault on 11 female pupils between 1964 and 1985. He was found guilty on 59 of 67 charges and sentenced to 11 years' imprisonment, with five years suspended. On appeal, the Court of Appeal reduced the sentence to two years, suspending the final three years of the five‑year portion. Barry must post a €1,000 bond and keep the peace during the suspended period. His release date is set for 20 May 2019. The appeal was based on the trial judge's error in setting the initial sentence and on Barry's advanced age, health problems and community contribution. The appeal against conviction was dismissed. The case involved allegations of indecent touching and forced positions in the classroom, with most incidents occurring in front of other pupils. The court noted that the offences were committed in a small community where everyone knew each other. Patrick Barry pleaded not guilty.
2015-04-24 · Clare
An 81‑year‑old former primary school principal, Patrick Barry of Kilkee, has appealed his 11‑year prison sentence for indecent assault of 11 female pupils at Moyasta National School between 1964 and 1985. He pleaded not guilty to 67 charges but was found guilty on 59 counts by a jury; the trial judge, Gerald Keyes, directed not guilty on eight counts. Barry's sentence, imposed at Ennis Circuit Criminal Court on 19 November 2014, was 11 years with the final five suspended. The Court of Appeal dismissed his appeal against conviction, ruling it could not hold on any of his 12 grounds of appeal. Barry's appeal against sentence was reserved, with a decision expected on 15 May. The case involved allegations of indecent touching and forced positions in the classroom, with victims present. The court noted the seriousness of the offences and Barry's position of trust. The appeal was heard by Justices Garrett Sheehan, Alan Mahon and George Birmingham.
2015-04-20 · Clare
Patrick Barry, 80, former principal of Moyasta National School in west Clare, was convicted of indecent assault on 11 female pupils between 1964 and 1985. He pleaded not guilty to 67 charges but was found guilty on 59 counts by a jury, with the remaining eight dismissed by Judge Gerald Keyes. Barry received an 11‑year prison sentence, of which the final five years were suspended. On 20 April 2015, the Court of Appeal dismissed his appeal against conviction. Justice Garrett Sheehan, sitting with Justices George Birmingham and Alan Mahon, ruled that Barry's 12 grounds of appeal were unsubstantiated. The appeal was rejected, leaving the original conviction and sentence in place. The case highlighted allegations that Barry had physically abused pupils in class, including touching them indecently and forcing them to touch his genital area.
2015-02-23 · Clare
Patrick Barry, an 80‑year‑old former primary school principal from Kilkee, appealed his conviction for indecent assaulting 11 women who were pupils at Moyasta National School between 1964 and 1985. He had pleaded not guilty to 67 charges but was found guilty on 59 counts and not guilty on eight by Judge Gerald Keyes. Barry received an 11‑year sentence, with the final five years suspended. In the Court of Appeal, Barry's counsel, Roderick O'Hanlon SC, argued that the indictment lacked proper particulars, which he claimed materially affected Barry's defence and cross‑examination rights. He contended that the prosecution's failure to detail interviews with Gardaí and the delay in proceedings prejudiced Barry. The appeal was heard on 23 February 2015, with the court reserving judgment for 23 March. Barry was assisted by his sisters during the hearing and was noted to have poor health and impaired hearing.
2015-01-12 · Clare
Patrick Barry, 80, former principal of Moyasta National School, was denied bail while appealing his conviction for indecent assault. Barry faced 67 charges for assaulting 11 pupils between 1964 and 1985. A jury found him guilty on 59 counts; he was acquitted on eight. Judge Gerald Keyes sentenced him to 11 years, suspending the last five. The Court of Appeal, led by Mr Justice Seán Ryan, declined bail, noting no new legal point was raised, but set an appeal hearing for February 23. Barry was ordered to be identified on the foot of victim requests, which the victims declined. Patrick Barry pleaded not guilty.