Husband keyed ‘selfish’ and ‘adulterer’ onto wife’s car

A mother has received the protection of the courts from her husband after he keyed ‘adulterer’ onto the body of her car.

At the family court in Ennis, Judge Patrick Durcan granted a safety order for 12 months to the woman after he heard evidence that the man had, along with ‘keying’ his wife’s car, also slashed the tyres of the vehicle.

Judge Durcan said that “anyone who could do what he did with respect to her car is acting in a manner calculated to cause fear and anxiety and a feeling of threat within the person whom it is directed at”.

The woman denied she was having an affair after solicitor for the man, Frank Doherty, said that the safety order application proceedings were designed to eliminate his client from the picture.

In the case, the woman said her husband slashed her car tyres and keyed the words ‘adulterer’ ‘selfish’ and ‘greedy’ onto the body of the car.

In evidence, the man admitted keying his wife’s car and confirmed that he was not under the influence of drink or drugs at the time. He said: “What I did is not acceptable. I apologise for my actions.”

The man said he was angry about his wife having the alleged affair. The man denied he rammed the car owned by the man that his wife was having the alleged affair with.

In evidence, the woman confirmed she and the children have moved out of the family home to start afresh elsewhere.

Referring to her husband, the woman said: “I am in fear of him. I am scared of him.”

The woman alleged that years before they got married, her husband armed with a Samurai sword returned to a party at a pub they were at after he saw her chatting to another man.

The woman also said that more recently, three drug dealers came to the family home looking for her husband over debts and warned her they would shoot her husband.

She said two weeks later, shots were fired at the home of her husband’s relative but hit a neighbouring house instead.

In evidence, the man denied the Samurai sword incident, telling the court that gardaí would have been informed if a man brandished a dangerous weapon in a pub and also stated that no one has ever called to his home who has any convictions or any dealings with drugs.

He said the windows of a relative’s neighbour’s home were shot in but it had been reported that the intended target was a drug dealer recently released from prison.

He said: “The whole thing had nothing to do with me.”

In his ruling, Judge Durcan said it was only for the damage to the woman’s car by her husband that he was granting the safety order.

He said the couple, in their evidence, each see the incidents outlined from diametrically opposed points of view.

Judge Durcan said he found the husband “is by far the more honest witness”.

The judge said he did not regard the woman “as a forthright witness”.

He said he was satisfied that the man had addressed issues before the court truthfully but his behaviour in relation to the damage to the car warrants the granting of a safety order.