€28k award after false extortion claim

A woman has been awarded €28,000 against the Garda after a High Court jury found she suffered emotional harm as a result of a false extortion allegation against her when she was a secondary school student.

Lydia O’Hara, 25, from Portlaoise, had sued the board of management of her former school, Scoil Chriost Ri in Portlaoise, and the Garda Commissioner, as a result of the false allegation.

After nearly four hours, the jury found emotional harm had been inflicted on her as a result of the gardaí’s actions on March 9, 2004, when she was brought into the principal’s office and accused of extortion by a garda following the allegation from a second-year student who made it up as a cover for stealing money from her family.

The jury found the gardaí were reckless in their actions, but also found the school itself had not inflicted damage. After making their award of €28,000 against the Garda Commissioner, Mr Justice John Hedigan discharged them.

He adjourned the issue of costs to July 28.

Afterwards, Ms O’Hara’s solicitor David Walley said on her behalf: “It is a good day for children.”

Ms O’Hara, a Junior Cert student at the time, claimed the way the gardaí and school handled the allegation ruined her life. She suffered post-traumatic stress, depression, self-harmed and had panic attacks in public as a result, it was claimed.

The defendants denied the claims and argued they were not reckless in their actions.

The school said it was obliged to investigate a complaint made by the mother of the false accuser.

The gardaí argued they carried out a normal investigation once the false accuser made a statement with the support of her mother. They say they did their job, got to the bottom of the matter quickly, and exonerated Ms O’Hara.