Security guard should have been more professional than dumping teen’s CV in bin that led to altercation says Judge

DISTRICT Court Judge Kevin Kilrane has said a security guard with Dunnes Stores had lost his objectivity in dealing with a teenager who had gone to the store with his CV which he had dumped in bin in front of him.

The Judge said Shane O’Brien who worked at Dunnes on Cranmore Road as security manager had acted in a inappropriate, insulting manner in putting the youth’s CV in the bin.

The Judge said if a Garda had behaved in a similar fashion by binning something that was handed in to a station he would be subjected to discipline.

Mr O’Brien also admitted that he had invited the youth to the car park for a fight “where there were no cameras” but he said this was a trick in order to get him away from the main door of the store.

Judge Kilrane said this was a strange way to handle things.

The court heard that the teenager’s father came to the store on hearing of the incident and that he was ejected from the store after being grabbed around the neck and ended up on the ground outside where he began to throw ceramic flower pots at Mr O’Brien and another security guard.

Dylan Clarke ( 19) and his father Tony Murrin ( 56) were charged with assaulting Mr O’Brien and with engaging in threatening, abusive or insulting behaviour. Murrin was further charged with damaging pots to the value of € 82 which he handed in to court at the outset of the case. The court heard that Murrin called Gardaí to the store around 2.30pm on Sunday, February 14th 2016.

Garda Rory Guinan said he met with Mr O’Brien who alleged he had been assaulted by the defendants. He had a cut to his forehead. Witness subsequently spoke with the defendants. During a question and answer session with Murrin on March 16th, he said his son, Dylan had gone to Dunnes to hand in his CV and met Mr O’Brien whom the defendant had made complaints about in the past over this treatment of another son.

Mr O’Brien took the CV out of his son’s hands and put it in the bin. Murrin said he went to the store with his son on hearing this along with his friend, Philip Murphy and another youth.

On entering the store, Mr O’Brien blocked him and told him he wasn’t going in to see any “f *** ing manager.”

Mr Murrin said he felt threatened and rang the Gardaí.

Words were exchanged. “He came up close to my face and next thing his hands were around my neck,” said the defendant.

A scuffle broke out between the defendant, Mr O’Brien, another security guard, Philip Murphy and the other youth. “We were all outside the door and I threw a flower pot at him ( Mr O’Brien) to keep him back,” said Murrin.

He said he had never met Mr O’Brien before and he and his family had been customers of the store for over 20 years. Murrin denied that he spat at the security guard. The defendant said he was struck in the jaw by Mr O’Brien.

Asked why he had thrown the pots, Murrin replied that he did so to protect himself and the kids. “He ( Mr O’Brien) was like a bull.” Murrin admitted to throwing two or three pots.

He could not remember if he had a shard from one of his pots and had threatened to slit Mr O’Brien’s throat with it.

He denied telling Mr O’Brien that everyday he looked in mirror he would “see that scar and you will remember a Murrin done that to you.” Murrin denied verbally abusing Mr O’Brien. The defendant was asked if he pretended to kick Mr O’Brien.

“At some stage I said the top of my boot looks sweet when he suggested we go to the car park away from the cameras.”

The defendant told Gardaí: “I’m sorry about what hap- pened. It could have been sorted better by both sides,” he said.

Dylan Clarke said he went with his friend Philip Murphy to hand in his CV. He was smoking a cigarette and waited at the door while his friend went in to look for a staff member they knew.

His friend returned with the CV saying he couldn’t find the staff member so the defendant said he went into it.

Half way down the clothes department he was grabbed on his left shoulder by Mr O’Brien who asked him what he was doing. Mr O’Brien took the CV off him and proceeded outside and threw it in the bin.

The defendant asked him why he did this and Mr O’Brien replied: “Go away you tinker.”

The defendant said he then went over to his father who lived closeby. They returned and his father asked why was the CV put in the bin and that he wanted to see the manager. Mr O’Brien told him to “f ***off.” The defendant said both he and his father were invited to the car park “where there are no cameras” by Mr O’Brien.

The defendant said he had tried to separate his father and Mr O’Brien and they fell on the ground outside the store.

His father had asked Mr O’Brien how he was after seeing the cut on his forehead and the security guard told him to “f***off, you tinker.”

Dylan Clarke said his left hand was broken above the knuckle after Mr O’Brien stamped on it during the altercation.

Mr Gerard McGovern, solicitor ( for Murrin) said the CCTV footage, which was later played to Judge Kilrane, clearly showed Mr O’Brien grabbing the de- fendant by the beck and putting him out through he door.

Mr O’Brien, in evidence said, he had called out to Dylan Clarke when he saw him come into the store but was ignored.

Witness told Clarke that he was barred but was told to get out of way “you fat f ***.”

Witness took the CV from the defendant and proceeded to walk to the door with him. He put the CV in the bin.

Clarke then told him that he would like to break his nose but that there were cameras around. Witness told him there were no cameras down n the car park.

He went outside the shop for five or six yards and then walked back to the store. He did this to get the defendant away from the door.

The defendant returned a short time after with three others including Tony Murrin who verbally abused him. Another security guard was with witness.

Tony Murrin feigned a kick at him before spitting at him. Witness then grabbed Murrin by the shoulders and put him out. Dylan Clarke kicked him twice in forehead.

Murrin was struck in the jaw and he picked up flower pots and threw them at him, one catching him on the arm, causing a cut.

Mr O’Brien said Dylan Clarke and his brother had been banned from the store for verbally abusing him previously.

In reply to Mr Eddie Henry, solicitor ( for Clarke), Mr O’Brien said the defendant had never been written to you informing him that he had been barred.

It was also suggested by Mr Henry that Clarke was allowed in some days and other days wasn’t.

“Any day I was there he wasn’t allowed in,” said witness.

It was put to witness that it wasn’t a proper way to treat people by dumping their CV and he replied that he dealt with the matter as he saw fit.

It was a lie he said to say he had stood on Clarke’s hand.

In reply to Mr McGovern, witness said Dunnes management hadn’t discussed the Murrin family with him before this incident despite a number of emails being sent to head office complaining about him by Tony Murrin.

Mr McGovern said some of the emails had been responded to but Mr O’Brien said this was the “usual default response by us.”

Mr McGovern, holding up letters to the court, said these were from staff members stating they never had any difficulty with the defendant.

Mr O’Brien said Tony Murrin was removed from the store because he had spat in his face.

Witness had struck him on the jaw outside because he was hitting the other security guard.

Mr McGovern handed in pics of Murrin telling the court that he had suffered extensive injuries in the incident with marks on his neck and arms.

It was put to Mr O’Brien that he was the aggressor and that his behaviour had been outrageous and hadn’t acted the way a professional should have.

Clarke in evidence said his hand had been in plaster for a number of weeks. It was put to him by Inspector Donal Sweeney that he told a doctor at Sligo University Hospital that he sustained the injury while punching in trying to protect his father.

“I never told him I punched anyone,” said Clarke, who denied hitting Mr O’Brien.

The defendant also stated he didn’t know he had been barred.

On watching the CCTV, Judge Kilrane said it wasn’t possible to discern if Tony Murrin had spat at the security guard or not

Giving judgement, Judge Kilrane said he was satisfied that Dylan Clarke was barred from the store but it was patently clear that Mr O’Brien should have acted in a professional manner. The CV should have been taken for passing on to management before the defendant was asked to leave.

“Instead, he lost his objec- tivity in dealing professionally with the incident at that stage.

He simply walked and put it in the bin outside the door and this was clearly and patently inappropriate and insulting and should not have been done,” said Judge Kilrane.

He was satisfied that Tony Murrin had used the most foul and filthy language on Mr O’Brien.

It was the most horrible, disgusting language that he ( Judge) had ever heard.

As a result of this, Mr O’Brien may then have lost a degree of objectivity and having been seriously provoked grabbed Murrin “as described around the neck and ejected him in that fashion.” The Judge said he was satisfied Murrin was inclandestine with anger and that he has a serious and uncontrolled temper.

He threw the pots and threatened to slit Mr O’Brien’s throat.

The Judge also found that Dylan Clarke had assaulted Mr O’Brien on the forehead and that the latter fractured his hand in the process. The incident had happened after Mr O’Brien had treated Clarke in a particularly insulting way. “He should have known better than dumping a CV in the bin even if he believed it was not genuine and I’ve no evidence to say otherwise.” It was something that should have been handled differently. Applying the Probation Act in respect of Dylan Clarke, the Judge said he did not think he set out in a premeditated way to assault the security guard. Clarke had drawn out at him as he was in grips with his father. Mr McGovern pleaded that Tony Murrin did what any father would have done if their son had been treated in this manner.

Judge Kilrane said Murrin had been in a vicious state of ill- temper. He spat at Mr O’Brien and used language.

It was an unfortunate incident that gathered momentum as it went along. Again, it wasn’t premeditated and he felt rejection and belittled.

The Judge adjourned the criminal damage and the assault charge to December 14th for monitoring and if there was nothing further the Probation Act would be applied.

A fine of € 200 was imposed on the public order offence with the Judge saying that type of language could not go unpunished.