Courts / Louth / Report
Drugs "courier" in custody after appeal court quashes unduly lenient sentence
Summary
A man from Ballyshannon, County Donegal, has been remanded in custody following a Court of Appeal decision to quash his suspended sentence. Ciaran Lawn (43) had received a three-year wholly suspended sentence in July 2021 after pleading guilty to possession of a controlled substance for sale or supply. The offence occurred on December 15, 2019, when gardaí observed him moving approximately €840,000 worth of cannabis and €59,000 of cocaine near Ardee, County Louth. The Director of Public Prosecutions successfully appealed the sentence as unduly lenient. The Court of Appeal found that wholly suspended sentences required exceptional circumstances, which the court deemed absent in this case. Lawn's defence had submitted he was a courier living on social welfare with significant mental health issues at the time of the offence. His case will return before the court on May 12.
Who, what, where, when and why
What: Report matter: Drugs "courier" in custody after appeal court quashes unduly lenient sentence. Procedural stage: appeal
When:
- December 15, 2019 Incident
- May 12 Hearing Or Sentence
- 2022-03-25 Publication
Case subjects
Appellant
Outcome: Ciaran Lawn (43), of Derrykillew, Ballyshannon, Co Donegal, had received a three-year wholly suspended sentence after pleading guilty to possession of a controlled substance for sale or supply contrary to Section 15a of the Misuse of Drugs Act 1977 on December 15, 2019 at Drumgoolestown, near Ardee, Co Louth. Kevin Segrave BL, for the DPP, said that wholly suspended sentences were only handed down when there were "special reasons of a substantial nature and wholly exceptional circumstances". "There was nothing in this case of an exceptional nature," Mr Seagrave said, adding that as a starting point, a three-year custodial term for the offence Lawn had been convicted of could be considered "somewhat light".
Places mentioned
- Court of Appeal
- Dundalk
- Dundalk Circuit Criminal Court
Topics
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