John Paul McDonagh jailed for threats to kill or cause serious harm

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

John Paul McDonagh was sentenced at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court on 25 July 2023 to two concurrent three-year terms for threats to kill or cause serious harm, with the final 18 months suspended for 18 months.

He pleaded guilty to producing two articles at an address in Howth on 27 and 28 March 2020, and to threats to kill or cause serious harm to gardaí there on those dates and to a garda in the Criminal Court of Justice on 28 March 2020. Two further February 2020 threat counts were taken into consideration.

Judge Orla Crowe set a headline sentence of four years and said his specific threats to named gardaí, previous convictions and offending while on bail were aggravating factors. The court was told he has 131 previous convictions.

The sentence will begin in April 2024 after his current prison term. He must undergo alcohol treatment during the suspended period.

Detective Garda Darren Burke gave evidence about telephone threats and McDonagh barricading himself in a Howth house with a hatchet and knife. He said the offending stemmed from alcohol addiction, and defence counsel said McDonagh had little memory of the day and suffered from PTSD and ADHD.

The proceedings were reported on 25 July 2023.