Criminal back in jail after celebrating freedom

A man celebrating his release from prison ended up being arrested for a Public Order offence – and following a few subsequent offences, ended up getting a new prison sentence when he came before Galway District Court.

Martin Ward with an address at the Cope Day Care Centre, Seamus Quirke Road, pleaded guilty to being in breach of the peace at McDonalds, Shop Street, where he was found asleep by staff and a few days later, on May 9 last, to causing a disturbance at the Cope Day Care Centre, where he threatened a Garda with a piece of wood before throwing his jacket at him.

There were cans of beer in the pockets of the jacket. He pleaded guilty to breaking a window at the centre and to punching a wall at the Garda Station after being arrested, causing €208 worth of damage in total.

On May 21 last, he was observed by a Garda to be so intoxicated, that he was barely able to stand outside the Meyrick Hotel, where he was shouting at passersby that he was going to kill them all. A few days previously he was involved in an altercation at the rear of Park House Hotel with another man and had to be separated. He was also identified as being the man who had urinated on a vehicle parked at the rear of the same hotel.

He further pleaded guilty to burglary at an apartment in the city though nothing was taken.

Defending solicitor, Seán Acton, explained that his client thought the apartment was vacant and only went in there to drink and had no intention of taking anything.

Judge Mary Fahy said there were no vacant properties in a city that was experiencing a housing crisis. She said Ward’s crimes were escalating and that burglary was a most serious offence.

Mr Acton said his client had had a tragic background which had involved being institutionalised. He accepted that it was a case of a vicious circle of being in custody, living in Cope properties and being homeless.

Judge Fahy said she understood all the challenges and had her sympathies but that Ward was now “out of control with his violent behaviour”.

Mr Acton said that in his dealings with Ward, he found him to be “one of the quietest men I know, but I know alcohol changes him”.

Judge Fahy said he had threatened a Garda and then threw a jacket full of beer cans at him, that he had also armed himself with a stick, had broken a window of the place where he stayed and entered someone else’s home.

Mr Acton agreed his client needed rehab but again stressed that his Ward had been celebrating being released from prison.

Judge Fahy said: “It doesn’t take a prison release for Ward to go celebrating. It seems he is celebrating every day he walks out the door. . . he goes on a riot.”

She imposed a total of nine months’ imprisonment to be backdated to May 27 when he was arrested and held in custody.

That included six months for the burglary, one month consecutive for criminal damage at Cope and two months consecutive for being in breach of the peace, taking everything else proved and taken into account.

She agreed to Mr Acton’s request to suspend that sentence to give him a chance to liaise with the Probation Services so he could get onto a residential treatment programme. She imposed it on his own bond of €200 on the conditions he be on good behaviour, attend all appointments with the Probation Services personnel and attend rehab.