Stephen Glynn’s drug conviction appeal dismissed

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

The Court of Appeal dismissed Stephen Glynn’s appeal against his conviction for possessing a controlled drug for sale or supply with a market value of €13,000 or more. Ms Justice Donnelly delivered the judgment on 25 March 2021.

Glynn had earlier pleaded guilty to the separate offence of possessing a controlled drug for sale or supply. The issue at his trial on the section 15A charge was whether the drugs had reached the €13,000 threshold.

Gardaí found ten packages of diamorphine, or heroin, concealed in his car during a search on routine patrol. The drugs weighed 245.431 grams. Evidence put their value at just under €10,000 between dealers, but at €34,360 if broken down into individual street deals.

On 12 March 2018, Glynn was sentenced to 10 years’ imprisonment for the section 15A offence, following a previous conviction for that offence in 2008. The judgment said the conviction was subject to review after five years. The prosecution garda accepted that Glynn was handling the drugs for €200, was at the low end of the chain and had cooperated on arrest, making full admissions.

Glynn argued that the trial judge had erred in allowing the question of value to go to the jury. The Court of Appeal held that the relevant market value was the retail or street value. It said this interpretation avoided the absurdity of the same package falling below the threshold for a dealer higher up the chain but exceeding it for an end dealer.