The High Court reserved judgement on a contempt of court case involving seven water‑charge protesters who may face jail or a fine for allegedly breaching a 20‑metre exclusion zone around water‑meter installation sites in Dublin. The court heard affidavits and viewed video footage supplied by GMC Sierra Ltd, the meter‑installation company, which claimed the protesters had entered the exclusion zone and interfered with workers. The seven named protesters were Damien O'Neill, Paul Moore, Bernie Hughes, Mark Egan, Richard Larkin, Michael Batty and Derek Byrne. GMC's lawyers presented surveillance footage from operatives and from a Facebook page, showing the protesters allegedly removing safety barriers and confronting workers. The court also heard an affidavit from Eoin Corrigan of First Pulse Ltd, who described threatening behaviour but admitted no video evidence existed. The case was scheduled for a decision by Judge Paul Gilligan on Thursday morning.
The trial opened for 21‑year‑old William Moran, charged with the murder of 22‑year‑old Martin Brophy, who died from severe head injuries in Waterford in May 2012. Moran pleaded not guilty. The prosecution presented evidence that Moran had told a friend on Facebook that he had "beat" Brophy to death with a lock and had used a concrete block on his head. CCTV footage showed Moran and another man with two girls entering the old WIT building on 19 May 2012; the girls left around 9:50 pm, while the men remained. Witnesses testified that an argument arose between Moran and Brophy over a cousin, Ray Connelly, and that Moran subsequently assaulted Brophy, grabbing him, kicking his head, stamping on a metal locker, and throwing a concrete block at him. The prosecution described the injuries as forced trauma to the head, with alcohol intoxication as a contributing factor.
In a January 2015 hearing, a 22‑year‑old man, whose identity the court ordered remain confidential, was found to have posed as a teenage girl on Facebook to lure a 13‑year‑old boy into exposing himself on a webcam. The man had no prior or ongoing connection to the victim. He pleaded guilty to one count of possession of child pornography and twelve counts of sexually exploiting a child, offences committed at his Dublin home between 18 March and 12 October 2012. Gardaí seized a laptop containing 39 images and videos of children under 16 in sexual situations, with filenames such as "11‑year showing his nice cock" and "preteen paedo boys". The court remanded the offender in continuing custody pending sentencing. The judge also ordered that the fake girl's name and the man's full address at the time of the offences could not be published. The case was heard by Judge Mary Ellen Ring.
In a High Court hearing on 22 January 2015, Ktech Security obtained an injunction preventing anti‑eviction activists from approaching within 2 km of Dublin's Citywest Hotel during the Irish Country and Western Music Awards. The activists, including Jerry Beades and Tom Darcy, opposed the order, denying wrongdoing and claiming a constitutional right to protest. Ktech argued that the activists' campaign of threats and intimidation, particularly on social media, harmed its business and reputation. The judge, Justice Paul Gilligan, granted the injunctions, noting that the activists' right to assembly was overridden by Ktech's right to earn a living and its employees' right to work. Additional injunctions were issued to prevent protests at Ktech's offices and employees' homes, and the case was fast‑tracked for a full hearing. Ktech denied allegations of violent or unprofessional conduct.
Sean Hulgrain, 23, of Thornfield Square, Clondalkin, pleaded guilty in Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to assaulting Garda Wayne Keown at a Swedish House Mafia concert in Phoenix Park on 7 July 2012. Hulgrain struck Keown in the face, breaking his nose, after insulting him as a "garda scumbag." The assault followed a bump between Keown's group and Hulgrain's group, with Keown's friend having previously met Hulgrain in Crete. Hulgrain had 17 prior district court convictions, including a threat to kill. Judge Mary Ellen Ring imposed a suspended sentence of three years, noting Hulgrain's transformation since his release from custody in April, his participation in anger‑management and alcohol‑awareness programmes, and his cooperation with Probation Services. The sentence was suspended on the condition that he maintains peace and continues his probation work. The court also heard that Keown had tracked Hulgrain via Facebook and that Hulgrain had denied attending the gig when later arrested.
A 27‑year‑old man who met a 16‑year‑old girl on Facebook and had sex with her nine days later was found guilty of two counts of defilement of a child in Dublin Circuit Criminal Court. He pleaded guilty in January and February 2013 at two Dublin locations. Judge Desmond Hogan adjourned sentencing to February next year and requested a Probation Service report. The defence lawyer, Caroline Biggs SC, argued that there was no lack of consent and that rumours of the case were exaggerated. In a Facebook exchange read in court, the offender claimed a friend had said he had raped the girl, to which she replied she knew he had not. The court heard that the victim's parents had not contacted her recently and that she had "gone off the radar". The defendant had previously sent naked photographs to the victim and had also received such images from her.
A 21‑year‑old man, who was 19 when the offences occurred, posed as a teenage girl on Facebook to sexually exploit boys aged 13 to 14. He convinced them to send sexually explicit pictures and to masturbate via an online video link. He also engaged in a sexual act with a child between 6 and 9 June 2009 and 30 September 2009, and pleaded guilty to three charges of exploitation of a child and two counts of defilement of a child in Dublin between April and October 2012. He has no prior convictions and is said to be remorseful. Judge Mary Ellen Ring adjourned the case to December to allow a probation services report to be completed, and remanded him in continuing custody until that date. The man's counsel, Padraig Dwyer SC, believes the report will be positive. The judge will decide on publishing the man's identity after finalising the sentence.
The High Court has ordered the arrest of an independent candidate standing for Donegal County Council following her alleged failure to comply with court orders regarding defamatory material posted online. Mr Justice Paul Gilligan ruled on Friday that Patricia McCafferty of Bundoran be arrested and brought before the court on a charge of contempt of court. Bundoran Town Council sought the order after Ms McCafferty allegedly failed to remove YouTube videos from the social media platform despite a High Court directive issued on 1 May requiring their removal. The council claims the videos and signage displayed in the town make defamatory allegations against its members and officials. The court heard that while roadside signs have since been taken down, the YouTube posts remain accessible. Ms McCafferty, a former traffic warden dismissed by the council in 2008, was not present at the hearing. The judge found she had breached the court orders and been properly served notice of proceedings.
In a 2014 Central Criminal Court hearing, Robert Corbet, a 25‑year‑old from Sheffield Cross, Laois, was charged with the murder of 30‑year‑old nanny Aoife Phelan. Corbet pleaded not guilty but admitted manslaughter. He told Gardaí that he had snapped after Phelan threatened to ruin him if he walked away from her and her pregnancy. He claimed he had met her in his jeep on 25 October, that she had been "pushy" about not being in a relationship, and that he struck her on the head several times. Corbet said he then drove to Dublin, left her body on a bridge, and tried to dispose of it. He denied any recent phone contact about a pregnancy, but phone records and deleted WhatsApp messages were presented. The case was heard before Mr Justice Garrett Sheehan.