Man sprayed blood on gardaí and said he had 'the virus'

A man on early release from a five-year sentence who sprayed blood from his cut hands into the faces of four gardaí after claiming he had ‘the virus’ has been jailed for a further three years by Judge Elizabeth Dunne at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court.

Damien Carolan, aged 22, walked into Lucan garda station in April 2002 and punched the public hatch window several times until it smashed.

A number of gardaí went to restrain him but he shouted he had HIV and Hepatitis C and would give the infectious diseases to the officers.

He sprayed blood into the eyes of Garda Mark Dermody and into the faces of Garda David Byrne and Garda Martin Geraghty, while they tried to protect pregnant colleague Garda Fiona Colleran, who first went to arrest Carolan.

A fifth member, Garda Justin Morrissey, had blood sprayed onto his shirt in the incident.

Carolan, from Airlie Heights, Lucan pleaded guilty to four counts of spraying blood onto the gardaí with the intention of making them believe they would contract an infectious disease and one count of criminal damage on April 14, 2002.

He has 13 previous convictions.

Judge Dunne, who directed that the additional three year sentence should commence in March 2005 on the expiry of Carolan’s present sentence, commended the gardaí for the exemplary way they dealth with the case and their bravery in trying to protect another colleague.

Carolan was jailed for five years for robbery in February 2000 but released on review in January 2002.

His sentence was reactivated last July because of this incident, as well as his ongoing drug addiction and failure to comply with the Probation Services.

Gardaí Byrne, Dermody and Geraghty told the court the incident had a traumatic affect on their lives because they had to submit numerous blood samples and it was six months before they received the all-clear.

All three agreed Carolan was under the influence of drink and drugs and couldn’t remember what he had done when he woke up in Lucan garda station the following morning.

He apologised to them and they accepted that his offer of remorse was genuine.

Garda Dermody, who described Carolan as being ‘out of his head’ when he entered the station, said he was blinded for a few minutes in the incident.

He added that the following six months had a serious affect on his life. His relationship with his girlfriend collapsed and it was exactly 200 days later that he got the all-clear.

Garda Byrne said he had splinters of glass thrown into his hand and his face was covered in blood. It caused him great concern that he would become infected with Hepatitis C or HIV because he knew Carolan was an intravenous drug user.

Garda Geraghty said he received blood in the face, as well as cuts to his hands and believed that Carolan had both infections and was intent on giving whatever he had to the gardaí.

He said he was buying a house with his partner at the time and the incident put a great strain on their relationship but thankfully they were still together.

Judge Dunne said the gardaí had a difficult enough time in their day to day work without having it complicated by people in custody or, like in this case, someone who walked in off the street.

She said she had no doubt Carolan’s apologies were genuine and not self serving.

"He has expressed his desire to get back on the straight and narrow in the past but as this case shows, the spirit is often willing but flesh is weak. I have no option to order that this sentence should commence when his current sentence expires in March 2005," she added.

Mr Giollaiosa O Lideadha BL, for Carolan, pleaded with Judge Dunne for leniency because his client recognised the damage he had caused and pleaded guilty at the earliest opportunity.

He couldn’t remember any of the incident but apologised to all the gardaí involved.