Court archive
Court reports mentioning Bantry, Cork
2023-11-14 · Mayo
The Central Criminal Court trial of James Kilroy, 50, accused of murdering his wife, Valerie French Kilroy, 41, at their Co Mayo home in June 2019, continued with the prosecution case closing. Mr Kilroy has pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity. The jury heard evidence from gardai interviews in which the accused described waiting in the long grass for his wife before slitting her throat and choking her with his bare hands. He stated he used a black serrated knife and smashed her head, describing the event as a frenzy. The prosecution noted that Ms French Kilroy died from strangulation, blunt force trauma, and a stab wound. Defence counsel called consultant forensic psychiatrist Dr Ronan Mullaney, who testified that the accused had a long history of cannabis use, including therapeutic consumption of high-THC 'AK-47' strain in the three years prior to the death. Dr Mullaney stated that THC can induce substance-induced psychosis in predisposed individuals and that the accused slightly increased his use in the week before the incident. The accused also reported feeling watched and paranoid in the days leading up to the event. The trial is ongoing, with no final verdict or sentence recorded at this stage.
2021-06-04 · Cork
The High Court has struck down a 15-year prison sentence imposed on Sean McManus, finding that Section 27(3F) of the 1977 Misuse of Drugs Act is unconstitutional. Mr Justice Michael Twomey ruled that the provision, which mandates minimum sentences for repeat drug trafficking offenders, impermissibly interferes with the judiciary's constitutional power to determine individual sentences. McManus, 39, from Baldoyle, Dublin, pleaded guilty in 2018 to possession of cocaine for sale or supply at Seascape, Dromleigh, Bantry, Co Cork, where the street value exceeded €13,000. He was previously convicted of drug trafficking in 2009. While his 2018 conviction stands, the judge ordered the sentence to be remitted to the Circuit Criminal Court for reconsideration. McManus's co-accused, Molly Sloyan, 28, from Kinsale, Co Cork, was jailed for ten years with the final three suspended. William Gilsenan and Dean Gilsenan received sentences of seven years with two suspended and ten years with three suspended, respectively. The court noted the defendants were involved in running a "cocaine factory" using solvents to extract cocaine from fabric. The State respondents opposed the action, arguing McManus lacked standing, but the High Court was bound by the Supreme Court's 2019 decision in the Wayne Ellis case, which declared similar mandatory sentencing provisions in the 1964 Firearms Act unconstitutional. The matter will be mentioned before the court at a later date for final orders.
2019-10-08 · Cork
Molly Sloyan, 26, from Kinsale, was sentenced to 10 years' imprisonment with the final three years suspended for her role in a cocaine "factory" operation in Bantry. The Court of Appeal found the headline tariff too high, reducing it to seven years, then to five years after mitigating factors. Sloyan admitted to renting a house, hiring a car and buying chemicals used in extracting cocaine from imported fabric, but she was not involved in the extraction itself. She was not the mastermind or top of the hierarchy, though she provided logistical support and was fully aware of the operation. The Court noted her lack of prior convictions, early guilty plea, cooperation with Gardaí, and a psychological report detailing life adversities. A suspended 18‑month period was imposed, and she must fully cooperate with probation services for two years. The decision was made by Mr Justice John Edwards, Mr Justice Patrick McCarthy, and Ms Justice Isobel Kennedy.
2019-07-23 · Cork
Molly Sloyan, 26, from Kinsale, Co Cork, had her 10‑year prison sentence for participation in a cocaine "factory" cut in half by the Court of Appeal. She had pleaded guilty at Cork Circuit Criminal Court to possession of cocaine for sale or supply at Seascape, Dromleigh, Bantry, on 26 November 2017. The original sentence, imposed by Judge Seán Ó Donnabháin, was 10 years with the final three years suspended, after the court described the operation as a sophisticated system of extracting cocaine from fabric imported from Brazil. Sloyan admitted renting a house on Airbnb, hiring a car and buying chemicals used in the extraction. The Court of Appeal found the headline sentence "simply too high" and re‑sentenced her to five years with the final 18 months suspended.
2019-05-31 · Clare
Andrew Shannon, 54, was convicted on 31 January 2014 for handling a stolen Frederick Goodall oil painting, a 1892 desert scene taken from Bantry House in Cork in March 2006. Gardaí searched his Dublin home in 2014, finding the painting valued at about €5,000. He was found guilty by jury after a two‑day trial and sentenced to two years' imprisonment by Judge Patricia Ryan in November 2014. Shannon appealed, arguing that evidence from his 2006 arrest over John Speed maps from Tinakilly House was improperly introduced to link him to the Bantry House theft. The Court of Appeal rejected this ground, stating the Gardaí had no suspicion of him in relation to Bantry House and that the evidence was admissible. The appeal was dismissed by Justice Isobel Kennedy, with the case heard by Justices George Birmingham and Patrick McCarthy.
2019-05-16 · Clare
Andrew Shannon, 54, was convicted on 31 January 2014 for handling a stolen Frederick Goodall oil painting, valued at about €5,000, found in his Dublin home. The painting, a 1892 desert scene, had been stolen from Bantry House, Cork, in March 2006. A two‑day trial in the Dublin Circuit Criminal Court led to a two‑year sentence imposed by Judge Patricia Ryan in November 2014. Shannon appealed today, arguing that evidence obtained during his 2006 arrest for suspected theft of John Speed maps from Tinakilly House was improperly used to convict him of handling the Goodall painting. His barrister, Marc Thompson BL, contended that Gardaí should have formally questioned him about Bantry House as a suspect, not while interrogating him on unrelated matters, and that the 2006 information was "fishing" for evidence. The Court of Appeal, presided over by Justice George Birmingham, will reserve judgment.
2019-03-22 · Dublin
Andrew Shannon, 54, was convicted on 31 January 2014 of handling a stolen Frederick Goodall oil painting, a 1892 desert scene taken from Bantry House in Cork in March 2006. Gardaí discovered the painting, valued at about €5,000, during a 2014 search of his home on unrelated grounds. A jury found him guilty after a two‑day trial, and Judge Patricia Ryan sentenced him to two years' imprisonment in November 2014. He was due to appeal the conviction today but had dismissed his solicitor and intended to represent himself. Judge George Birmingham warned him that the Court of Appeal, a three‑judge panel, was unconvinced he could do justice alone and urged him to secure counsel. The case was scheduled for hearing on 16 May. Shannon has 51 prior convictions, including theft, burglary and handling stolen property, and was previously jailed for damaging a Monet painting at the National Gallery of Ireland in 2012.
2018-11-30 · Clare
Andrew Shannon, 54, of Dublin, was sentenced to two years' imprisonment for possessing a stolen oil painting by Frederick Goodall, valued at €5,000. The painting, a desert scene dated 1892, had been taken from Bantry House in Cork in March 2006. Gardaí discovered the artwork during a 2014 search of Shannon's home for an unrelated matter. He was charged in September 2016, released on bail, but violated bail by travelling to the UK, prompting a European Arrest Warrant. A jury convicted him on 28 November 2018 after a two‑day trial. The sentence was back‑dated to 20 February 2018, the day he first entered custody on these matters. Shannon has 51 prior convictions, including theft, burglary and handling stolen property, and had previously received a six‑year sentence for damaging a Monet painting worth €10 million. He has ongoing health problems, including a quadruple bypass heart surgery in 2013, and is a student at Mountjoy Education Centre.
2018-04-24 · Ireland
Businessman Denis O'Brien is seeking findings that would be 'entirely destructive of' and 'effectively undermine' parliamentary speech, the Supreme Court has heard. Maurice Collins SC, representing the State, stated that O'Brien's proceedings arise from statements made by TDs Pease Doherty and Catherine Murphy regarding his banking affairs, which could indirectly substitute the courts for the Dail as the arbiter of parliamentary speech. O'Brien's legal team rejected these claims. Collins argued that the proceedings concern how the Dail Committee on Procedure and Privilege (CPP) handled O'Brien's complaint about the TDs' statements in May-June 2015, which the CPP dismissed. O'Brien has challenged this decision in judicial review. Collins contended that the CPP, as an agent of the Oireachtas, is protected under Article 15 of the Irish Constitution, which allows free speech in the Oireachtas, and that its decisions are non-justiciable. He referenced the Supreme Court's 2014 judgment in favor of a Seanad committee. Michael Collins SC for the CPP stated that any court review of the committee's decisions would render its protections under Article 15 'wholly illusionary.' Eileen Barrington SC for O'Brien argued that the CPP failed to follow its own rules and that the courts should intervene to protect the rights of a non-member of the Oireachtas. O'Brien claims the TDs did not act in good faith when making their statements. In 2016, Ms Justice Una Ni Raifeartaigh dismissed O'Brien's action, citing separation of powers and the potential chilling effect on parliamentary speech. The appeal focuses on the CPP's finding that the TDs did not breach standing orders. Following submissions on Tuesday evening, the seven-judge Supreme Court reserved its decision, with Chief Justice Frank Clarke noting it may take time before a judgment is delivered.
2016-06-07 · Cork
Anthony Kelleher, 42, of Macroom, Cork, was found guilty of assault causing serious harm to his wife Siobhán on 12 June 2014 and sentenced to eight years in prison by Judge Seán Ó Donnabháin in May 2016. He pleaded not guilty and his wife refused to testify against him. Kelleher applied for bail pending an appeal, but the Court of Appeal, presided over by Mr Justice George Birmingham, declined to grant bail because the State had not provided any grounds for it. The court set a hearing for 29 July and ordered the expedited preparation of trial transcripts. Kelleher's appeal will focus on the use of section 16 statements and the judge's directions to the jury. The State will have two weeks to respond after Kelleher files his submissions. His sister, who travelled from Bantry, offered surety for a potential bail.