Courts / Kildare / Report
Woman subjected to extreme harassment by garda says complaint to ombudsman was 'met with silence'
Summary
A woman who was subjected to an extreme campaign of harassment by her garda partner has said she was "profoundly let down" after making a complaint about him to the ombudsman, which was "met with silence". Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard that Paul Moody (46) sent the victim thousands of messages while she was in hospital pregnant and threatened to send intimate images to her employer. Moody, formerly of St Rapheal's Manor, Celbridge, Kildare, pleaded guilty to harassment and coercive control on dates between March 2016 and November 2017. The court heard how Moody's offending continued while the woman was in hospital pregnant and after the birth of their child. Their relationship ended in early 2017. The defendant was previously jailed in 2022 for engaging in a four-year campaign of harassment, threats, assaults and coercive control of Nicola Hanney. He had pleaded guilty to a charge of coercion. The victim said she felt "profound anger" that Moody continued to serve – "wearing the uniform of protection" – but was an abuser behind closed doors.
Who, what, where, when and why
What: Report matter: Woman subjected to extreme harassment by garda says complaint to ombudsman was 'met with silence'. Charges or matters: a charge of coercion. "If someone had listened in 2017, Nicola would have been spared", the victim said. Procedural stage: sentence
When:
- March 2016 Hearing Or Sentence
- November 2017 Incident
- December 2017 Other
- March 2018 Other
- October 2020 Other
- December 2024 Hearing Or Sentence
- March 2 Hearing Or Sentence
- March 8, 2016 Hearing Or Sentence
- March 5 Hearing Or Sentence
- March 4 Hearing Or Sentence
- March 6 Other
- March 8 Other
- August 2016 Other
- February 4, 2017 Other
- 2026-05-19 Publication
Case subjects
Convicted Person
Charges: a charge of coercion. "If someone had listened in 2017, Nicola would have been spared", the victim said (Admitted)
Plea: Guilty
Outcome: The defendant was previously jailed in 2022 for engaging in a four-year campaign of harassment, threats, assaults and coercive control of Nicola Hanney, whom he was in relationship with after the present victim. He said the court accepted that it must try to envision what global sentence would have been imposed if both cases had been dealt with together.
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