Mother who hit garda with car remanded in custody

A MOTHER-OF-THREE, charged with burglaries and assaulting a garda who was injured after he was hit by a car at a checkpoint, has been further remanded in custody.

Christina Joyce, 30, with an address at a hostel on Harcourt Street in Dublin, was charged four weeks ago and has been refused bail.

The incident happened just before 11am on April 9 on Macken Street in south Dublin when Garda Tom Gallagher, who was on checkpoint duty, was hit and dragged about 50 metres as he attempted to stop a light grey Volvo XC90.

He was taken to hospital, where he was treated for non-life-threatening injuries.

Ms Joyce was charged with six offences including dangerous driving and assault causing harm to Garda Gallagher at Macken Street.

She was also charged with criminal damage to the bonnet of a 08-reg vehicle belonging to another person, at Heytesbury Lane, Ballsbridge, Dublin, on the same date

She also faced three counts of burglary for entering one building at Heytesbury Lane and two other houses at Waterloo Road, Ballsbridge, as a trespasser with intent to commit theft, also on April 9.

She appeared again before Judge Michael Walsh, who further remanded her in custody to appear again at Dublin District Court on May 16 next.

At an earlier hearing, Garda Christopher Jones voiced serious objections to bail based on the seriousness of the allegations.

He had said the garda was ‘dragged along by the vehicle driven by Ms Joyce’. He suffered a dislocated knee and ligament injury.

Garda Jones alleged the defendant, ‘crashed into council workers who were injured and still have not returned to work’.

It was expected that further charges would be brought, the garda said.

It was envisaged that the case will go forward to a higher court.