Grabbed shop worker’s hip on way out of centre

A 35-yer-old man who grabbed a female store worker’s hip as he was being escorted out of a shopping centre for being abusive was given the benefit of the Probation Act by Judge Kevin Kilrane.

Before the court was John Anthony Healy of The Bridge, Strandhill who admitted engaging in threatening, abusive and insulting behaviour at Johnston Court shopping centre on January 25 th last.

Inspector Donal Sweeney said Gardaí got a report of a man refusing to leave the shopping centre at 7.35pm. He had verbally abused staff and security at the Boots store.

As he was leaving the centre he stopped and grabbed the lower hip area of a female store worker who was closing the shutters on another premises.

Healy was eventually put out of the centre.

A description was given of the defendant and he was located about 20 minutes later by Garda Joe Evans who arrested him.

Garda Evans told Judge Kilrane that he subsequently visited the shop worker and he explained the nature of the assault which had occurred on her but she was happy to have the matter dealt with through a Public Order offence.

CCTV was viewed and witness agreed with Ms Laura Spellman, solicitor (defending) that the defendant had stopped and had a couple of words with the female store worker on his way out.

Healy did not have any previous convictions.

Ms Spellman said the defendant wasn’t taking his medication at the time but had sought help in the weeks after it and received in-patient treatment. He was now taking his medication as directed.

Healy told the court that he had been mentally unstable at the time having stopped taking his medication. He wasn’t of full mind, he said.

He had been taking medication for 14 years and was now back on it.

Judge Kilrane told the defendant that it was for him to touch the store worker like he did.

“It’s very important you continue to take your medication,” he told the defendant before applying the Probation Act.