Two sisters accused of assault are acquitted

ASSAULT charges against two sisters relating to a ‘deeply unpleasant incident’ were dismissed recently, after a judge had no choice but to omit CCTV footage and statements from evidence.

Sisters Gail Miller (37), Ballinastoe, Roundwood, and Emma Abreu (38), Kindlestown Park, Greystones, were both accused of assault causing harm at Church Road, Greystones, on January 25, 2015.

Ms Abreu was accused of assaulting Paul Anthony Gunning and his wife Louise Gunning. Ms Miller was accused of assaulting Ms Gunning.

Mr Gunning told Bray District Court on Thursday, February 23, that he, the defendants and other friends were at the Mrs Robinson bar in Greystones on the evening of Saturday, June 24, to celebrate a birthday. He said that he and his wife arrived at 9.15 p.m. He said that he was speaking to Gail Miller outside after last orders about a previous dispute involving her other sister, Louise Fitzpatrick.

Mr Gunning told the court that there had been a civil matter in court relating to the previous incident and that he said to Gail that night that her sister Louise had exaggerated her claims and was caught lying on the stand.

‘I heard Emma Abreu say “don’t call my sister a liar”,’ said Mr Gunning. ‘She hit me on the back of the head. I got knocked out after a few punches. I came to, Emma and Gail were both dancing on my wife.

‘ They were kicking her and punching her. I tried to get to her. A couple of people were holding me back. I finally got to her and pulled Emma off her. Emma was like an animal. I hit her in self defence. There were loads of people on top of me, it was just madness,’ Mr Gunning said.

‘I was panicked for my wife. The damage they done to her was unreal. She couldn’t walk for weeks. She had scars on her face, and bruises on her body.’

Of Emma Abreu, Gunning said: ‘She wanted me dead that night.’

‘Matters did not occur in the way you would like the court to believe,’ said solicitor Brendan Maloney. ‘You want the court to believe you are completely innocent.’

He said that in the earlier civil case involving Louise Fitzpatrick, which was at the root of this dispute, Mr Gunning had paid €10,000 in compensation following injuries he had inflicted upon Ms Fitzpatrick in 2009.

‘You punched her in the face,’ said Mr Maloney.

‘I admitted what I had done,’ said Mr Gun- ning. ‘I handed myself in, I knew I done wrong.’

‘You started the argument outside Mrs Robinson’s,’ said Mr Maloney. ‘You were bitter about the civil case. When Emma sought to defend her sister from your verbal attack you choked her.’

‘No I didn’t,’ said Mr Gunning. The court heard that since 2009, efforts had been made to get along. Ms Miller had done make-up for Ms Gunning for an event without charging her; Ms Gunning agreed that had been a friendly gesture.

A barrister for Ms Miller said that earlier on the night of the incident, Mrs Miller had been outside with Ms Gunning, holding her hand. He said that she – Ms Gunning – was upset over the previous falling out and Ms Miller was calming her down. Ms Gunning said she could not recall such a conversation.

Louise Gunning told the court that she came out of the pub to Ms Miller shouting: ‘Your husband called my sister a liar.’

‘I said “yeah, she is.” I don’t remember anything after that,’ Ms Gunning told the court.

‘Everything went black. I didn’t see anything else. I had the feeling of lying on the ground in the foetal position. I thought I was dead. I can’t say for definite it was Gail who put me on the ground. I don’t remember being knocked out.’

She said that there was no animosity between them that night prior to the incident in question.

‘Everyone wanted to forget about the past and move on,’ she said.

A witness, Hazel Greene, who had been socialising with the parties that night, said that she saw Ms Abreu throw a bottle, she saw a scuffle on the ground, and she saw Mr Gunning hit Ms Abreu. She said that there was also a fight between Ms Gunning and Ms Abreu.

‘I heard someone saying “that’s a woman you’re hitting”’, said Ms Greene. ‘Louise and Emma were on the ground, pulling each other’s hair.

‘It was a nice night out,’ she said. ‘And World War Three broke out at the end of it.’

Another witness, Lorraine Curran, said that she saw ‘Anthony [Mr Gunning] with Emma’s head in his hand laying punches into her.’

The court heard evidence from the manager of Mrs Robinson’s at the time regarding the handing over of CCTV footage on the night to Garda Martina Scully.

The defence later successfully argued that the chain of evidence was breached.

‘Under evidence rules I have no option other than not to allow the disc,’ said Judge David Kennedy.

The defence also argued that Garda Scully did not give evidence of which power she invoked, under which act, when arresting the two defendants.

She told the court that they met voluntarily at Bray Garda Station and gave statements.

‘It wasn’t a valid arrest,’ said Judge Kennedy. ‘Which means that I can’t allow the statement.’

Garda Scully attempted to submit reports to the court, of which the defence said they had no prior knowledge. ‘Who are the authors of the reports?’ said Mr Maloney. ‘Are they in court? Is the doctor here?’

‘I can’t allow those either,’ said Judge Kennedy. ‘ There seem to be severe holes in the prosecution case in this matter. I don’t know if the State can continue. It’s a criminal prosecution, procedures have to be followed. It’s clear a deeply unpleasant incident took place,’ said the judge. ‘I have no option but to dismiss.’