A single punch after a day spent celebrating the drawn Cork-Kerry Munster final in pubs left a man with permanent physical injuries — but the emotional trauma on the wider family was just as bad, the Circuit Criminal Court in Tralee was told.

A psychotic episode caused a man to strike his mother with a sweeping brush during an attack on her last weekend.

A 16-year-old boy high on cocaine punched and kicked a woman in the face after she stopped her car when a bottle was thrown.

Some gardaí have purchased their own body-worn video recorders, because they want evidence in case they are wrongfully accused.

GRA president Dermot O’Brien has told Nóirín O’Sullivan, the Garda commissioner, that the force needs to increase in size to properly police the country, its Pulse computer system is “collapsing”, and uniforms are not fit for purpose.

The largest garda representative organisation is facing a vital ballot on rosters, and the election of new leaders, which will determine if it is to become more militant.

Gardaí are arresting “alarming” numbers of banned motorists driving cars, with three a day being caught red-handed.

A coroner has appealed to young drivers to slow down, saying “a car is a dangerous weapon”.

Gardaí want to be issued with tasers to subdue religious extremists because the likelihood is ordinary units will have to deal with them first before armed backup arrives.

Gardaí are to demand that the Garda Síochána Ombudsman Commission reveals what personal data it retains on individual members of the force.

A Toyota Land Cruiser suspected of being involved in a fatal hit-and-run crash almost three years ago, was registered in the name of a 22-year-old accused and he also had an insurance policy on the vehicle, a court heard yesterday.

A woman walking on the right side of the road in Cobh a year ago was struck by a motorist who drove away from the scene.

A woman admitted posting a lewd Valentine’s card and a G-string to a detective garda but denied mailing him a bullet or acting on behalf of his colleagues.

A 65-year-old pedestrian who was wearing dark clothes and had no torch or reflective gear died after being struck by a car, on February 6, an inquest was told.

A 14-year-old boy, who allegedly injured a woman during a phone snatch in Dublin, has been refused bail.

The widower of a 47-year-old woman, killed in a traffic accident on a dangerous stretch of road which wild deer are known to cross, has appealed to the authorities for action to tackle the problem.

The design of traffic islands on roads in Co Kerry may be changed to become more user-friendly, following the deaths of a motorist and a motorcyclist in separate accidents at such islands.

A mechanic claims he owns a Land Rover Discovery jeep he bought in Limerick on Christmas Eve from an ad on the Done Deal website but which turned out to be stolen.

A man who reversed a large truck carrying surf equipment over a tourist on Inch Strand two years ago has been found not guilty of the charge of dangerous driving causing her death.

A consultant psychiatrist employed by the HSE appeared in court yesterday charged with assaulting two gardaí and a pub worker and being drunk in a public place.

The mother of a 13-year-old boy, who was left traumatised and needing surgery after an unprovoked attack, has criticised the courts saying there has been too much leniency for her son's attacker.

A “suspect” Garda file on a key witness in the trial of Catherine Nevin for the murder of her husband was a “worthless” document, the principle investigating officer in the case told the Court of Criminal Appeal today.

Justice Minister Dermot Ahern should be told about the lack of support for crime victims, a judge said today.

THE Fiat motor company had made changes to the design of its Punto car following a fatal crash in Kerry last year, an inquest heard yesterday.

THE driver of a people carrier that crashed, resulting in the death of his four-year-old son, had earlier consumed eight pints and several shots of whiskey in Ballybunion, an inquest heard in Tralee.

A waste disposal company, its director and a truck driver contracted to the company have had their sentence adjourned at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court on charges of illegal dumping at sites in Wicklow.

An insurance claims handler who defrauded Axa Insurance of €1.1m over five years has been remanded in custody pending sentence at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court.

A DETECTIVE investigating the killing of Robert Holohan believes that Wayne O’Donoghue tried to set fire to the body of the schoolboy sometime after he dumped the remains.

A detective investigating the killing of Robert Holohan believes that Wayne O’Donoghue tried to set fire to the body of the school boy some time after he dumped the remains.

A man who embezzled over €200,000 from his employer to place bets at Paddy Power bookmakers has been remanded on bail for sentence on July 29 by Dublin Circuit Criminal Court.

A WOMAN charged with abducting a baby from a maternity hospital told gardaí she was sorry for what she had done, a court heard yesterday.