Suspended jail term for €27k theft from care home patient

A state counsel yesterday criticised a cleric for coming into court to give character evidence on behalf of a homeless campaigner convicted of stealing €26,852 from an 88-year-old care home patient.

At Ennis Circuit Court yesterday, Josephine O’Brien walked free for the four-year long theft from St Joseph’s hospital patient Stephen O’Halloran after Judge Gerald Keyes imposed a three-year suspended jail term on the 60-year-old.

Ms O’Brien used some of the proceeds of the €26,852 to open a drop-in centre for the homeless at Chapel Lane in Ennis where soup and sandwiches were provided.