33-year-old man jailed for assault causing harm to garda

This report is a localnews.ie summary based on public court reporting and records; sources are listed below.

A 33-year-old man was jailed for two years and four months for assault causing harm at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court on 6 December 2019. The offence occurred in Dublin while Garda Barry Purcell was helping social workers remove the man’s baby from his care.

Judge Karen O’Connor said aggravating factors included the psychological damage caused to Garda Purcell. The man does not accept the jury’s verdict and had 23 previous convictions, including a five-month sentence for sexual assault.

The sentence was backdated by five months to account for time already spent in custody.