Mother agrees 3 sons had history of criminal violence

A WOMAN who claims one of her sons was shot by his girlfriend’s father, agreed in court that her three sons had a history of criminal violence.

Anthony Kelly, aged 50, of 121 O’Malley Park, Southill, has pleaded not guilty at Limerick Circuit Court of possessing a Glock pistol with intent to endanger life at Southill on October 28, 2009.

Kelly’s daughter, Jessie Kelly, was in a relationship with Michael Lynch. Anthony Kelly is alleged to have shot and wounded Michael Lynch after a row broke out between members of the families on the night of October 27, 2009.

Mary Lynch of 556 Castle Oaks, O’Malley Park, Southill said she had asked Jessie Kelly to leave her house after a row broke out between Ms Kelly and her son, Gerard Lynch.

After going to Kelly’s house to explain the situation to Anthony Kelly, she received cuts to her face when she got into a fight with Ms Kelly.

Her sons, on seeing her injuries, decided to go to Ms Kelly’s house, saying Ms Kelly would not get away with what she had done to their mother.

As the row continued outside the Kelly home, Ms Lynch claims, Anthony Kelly pulled a gun and shot and wounded her son Michael.

Cross-examined yesterday by Brendan Nix SC, for the accused, Ms Lynch agreed that her sons, Michael and Gerard, had convictions for criminal violence. Another son had been arrested in a Limerick hotel in possession of a machine gun — a short time after being released from prison. She accepted Michael and Gerard were involved in an attack on people in a house in Sixmilebridge at 5.30am one morning where they had gone “tooled up” with a samurai sword over “tittle tattle” gossip.

Mr Nix asked Ms Lynch if her sons were prepared to smash up a house in Sixmilebridge over tittle tattle, how much worse would they be if they saw their mother with marks on her face.

Ms Lynch replied she did not know, but her sons were very angry. She did not know if her sons had “tooled up” before going to Kelly’s house or if they had made threatening phone calls to Ms Kelly

When asked to leave the Lynchs’ house, Ms Kelly said she would go up and tell her father what had happened and get him to get the whole lot of the Lynchs sorted out.

Ms Lynch said she then went up to Anthony Kelly’s house to ensure he did not get the wrong story from his daughter. On meeting Ms Kelly, they argued and hit one another. Anthony, at Ms Lynch’s request, pulled his daughter away.

On returning home Ms Lynch was asked by her sons what had happened to her face and she realised she had a scratch near her eyebrow and she was bleeding.

Her sons then decided to go back up to the Kellys, saying Ms Kelly would not get away with it.

Ms Lynch followed her sons and when she got up to Kellys, her sons and Anthony Kelly were arguing.

Anthony Kelly told her: “If you don’t take them away I will shoot them.”

The next thing she remembered was Anthony Kelly pulling a black handgun from behind his back and firing three shots into the air.

He then fired a fourth shot and hit her son Michael as he tried to run away.

The trial continues.