My life was stolen from me, says garda

A man who left a garda with life-altering leg injuries when he jammed him between a stolen car and a patrol vehicle has been jailed for seven years.

Patrick McDonagh, aged 26, of Bath Road, Balbriggan, Dublin, pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to causing serious harm to Garda Ciaran Murrihy at Clonuske Rise, Hamlet Lane, Balbriggan on August 29, 2015.

He further pleaded guilty to reckless endangerment of Gda Murrihy, assaulting Garda Stephen Hughes and Garda Vincent Turley and unlawful use and criminal damage of a vehicle at the same location and date.

Gda Murrihy, who is still in a wheelchair, described in his victim impact statement how he was “haunted” by the vision of McDonagh driving the stolen car directly at him seconds later while he was lying on the ground.

Gda Murrihy said he had since gone from being a proud garda and active father-of-two, to feeling “useless,” he said in the statement read out in court by Sergeant Padraig Lynch.

He paid tribute to his wife, who he said helped him with everything. He described missing work and his formerly busy lifestyle and added that he now only had medical appointments to plan for.

He said McDonagh “stole my life from me and has left me with so little”.

McDonagh has 19 previous convictions, including drunk driving, robbery and aggravated burglary. Judge Martin Nolan imposed the seven year sentence on the most serious charge. He imposed a concurrent sentence of three-and-a-half years for the offence of assaulting Gda Hughes. The sentences date from August 31, 2015 when McDonagh was arrested.