A man in his twenties who grabbed a garda by his neck and then threw punches at him was given the benefit of the Probation Act at this week’s Ballina District Court as Judge Mary Devins said that the defendant has made “very, very, genuine attempts to mend his ways”.
On April 24 2011 after 2am, gardaí were on mobile patrol at Longneck’s nightclub when Andrew Hamilton, Foxford, shouted into the Garda patrol car “why don’t ye get real f***ing jobs”.
A while later, the gardaí returned to the same car park and saw two men fight. The row then moved near the banks of the River Moy, and as the gardaí tried to intervene Hamilton jumped over a wall and grabbed Garda Brian Fowley by his neck and tried to remove his baton. The defendant then left the scene and another garda ran after him. Hamilton resisted arrest; he locked himself onto a tree and threw punches at Garda Fowley.
An updated probation report stated that the defendant has attended addiction counselling for his drinking and the defendant has not come to any garda notice since the incident.
Judge Mary Devins applied the Probation Act.
