71-YEAR-OLD ASSAULTED TWO GARDAÍ

A TUBBERCURRY pensioner has been jailed for a total of four months for assaulting two gardaí, drunk driving and dangerous driving at the district court.

William Frizzell, 71, from Goldfield, Tubbercurry, pleaded guilty to the offences, which took place at Powellsborough, Tubbercurry, and Magheranore, Tubbercurry, on November 21, 2019. A related charge of endangerment was taken into consideration and another charge of dangerous driving was struck out.

The court heard the defendant had an alcohol breath reading of 87 mcgs.

Sergeant Derek Butler told the court that gardaí saw a white Citroen van coming from Tubbercurry to Ballymote.

It was driving erratically and swerving all over the road at Powellsborough and was driving at high speed.

Gardaí followed the van, it failed to stop and struck a ditch and then drove in a laneway to a farmyard. The van stopped four or five metres away. The van then reversed back at speed ramming the garda patrol vehicle.

The sergeant told the court that the garda vehicle rose up in the air and Sergeant John Walsh had his foot trapped between the van and the ground.

The defendant got out of his van and then struck the sergeant in the ear and also struck Garda Trevor Hyland in the chest.

Sergeant Murray then attended the scene as aid had been called. The defendant was arrested on suspicion of drink driving.

The court heard that the defendant had two previous convictions for drink driving.

Defence solicitor Robert Kelly told the court that his client admitted that his behaviour was “totally unacceptable”.

He had gone to the garda station to try to contact Sergeant Walsh to apologise and would do so again in court.

His client was a hard-working man of 71 who had been working since he was 16 and had been over and back to building sites in England.

The defendant lived alone and had left his farm to his niece, the court heard.

The defendant had medical issues and attended the doctor once a week and lived eight miles from the doctor, so the driving ban would have a big effect on him.

Mr Kelly said: “He was in court to take his medicine.”

It was totally out of character for him, said the solicitor. He had a lot of drink taken, which, combined with medication, did not help.

The solicitor said that the defendant had €500 in court as a gesture of his remorse.

Judge Kevin Kilrane said there were very few mitigating factors other than the guilty plea.

The defendant was out of his mind with drink and very lucky that there was not an accident on a busy road. The defendant drove to a farmyard and made a “very determined effort” to damage the garda van to make his escape and he assaulted two gardaí. The defendant must go to jail.

The judge said the gardaí must be protected in the execution of their duty and any assault on them must be looked upon as an assault on the State.

The defendant was given two fourmonth concurrent jail sentences for the assaults on the two gardaí. He was given two more identical sentences for drunk driving and dangerous driving at Powellsborough and given two concurrent driving bans of four years for those offences.

Leave to appeal to the circuit court was set at a €100 bond or independent bond of €2,100, of which €700 was to be lodged or his own cash bond of €1,000.