Garda pleads guilty to assaulting student who removed his cap

A STUDENT who took off a garda’s hat in Cork city centre ended up being knocked unconscious by the officer and left bleeding on the ground.

Michael Kiernan, 53, who had an unblemished 30-year career as a garda, retired from the force after the assault and pleaded guilty at Cork Circuit Criminal Court to a charge of assault causing harm to the young man.

The sentencing judge dismissed the charge under the Probation of Offenders Act yesterday.

The case was investigated and prosecuted by the Garda Síochána Ombudsman Commission (GSOC) and was its first prosecution of a case of assault by an on-duty officer.

GSOC senior investigator, Denis Murphy, testified yesterday that on February 23, 2007, the student was socialising with friends, had six pints of beer and stopped drinking before midnight.

At 3am he ran up behind Garda Kiernan and took off his hat. He then ran from the scene.

Two gardaí on bicycle patrol in the city centre later advised Gda Kiernan that they had apprehended the young man at Hanover Street, Cork.

Mr Murphy said the young man fully expected to be arrested and accepted that what he had done was stupid.

“Garda Kiernan got out of a patrol car, walked directly to the man, he made no attempt to arrest or speak to him. He struck him a blow to the head, knocking him to the ground. He got back in the car and left, leaving him bleeding and unconscious on the ground,” Mr Murphy said.

The injured party’s friends called for medical assistance.

Donal McCarthy, barrister for Michael Kiernan, whose address was given as 19 Washington Street, Cork, said: “He cannot account for his behaviour. He apologises. He finds it inexplicable. He cannot account for going away, coming back and doing what he did.

“He has destroyed 30 years of his career — an otherwise successful career that was unblemished. He now works as a taxi driver.”

The defendant retired from the gardaí soon after the incident as he felt if he could do something like that he should not be in the force.

Judge Seán Ó Donnabháin said: “You were an active and serving guard. It is a matter of extreme seriousness that a guard would get involved in behaviour of this type. Your status adds to the seriousness of the offence. It is undoubtedly a very sad case.

“You had 30 years’ experience and in a moment of madness you acted this way, you probably do not understand yourself why you did it.

“You have admitted what you did, you fully and adequately compensated the injured party (the compensation sum was not revealed).

“The consequences for you personally are that you resigned from a job you probably liked and in which you had many years of service to go.

“You took your behaviour seriously and went about removing yourself from the area that caused your difficulty. You gave up your job, very responsibly. Because of exceptional factors I will impose the Probation of Offenders Act.”

This has the effect of dismissing the charge and recording no conviction in light of the defendant’s good character and the way he met the case against him.