Camera footage shown at garda assault trial

A man who claims he was assaulted by a garda when he attended the 2002 "Reclaim the Streets" march in Dublin has identified himself on camera footage of the event.

Mr Fergal Leddy (aged 34) pointed out to prosecuting counsel Mr Thomas O’Connell SC (with Mr Bernard Condon BL) a frame in the video in which he said he could see himself lying on the ground while he protected himself from blows.

It was day four of the trial at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court in which Garda Paul Tallon of Mountjoy Station, Dublin has pleaded not guilty to assault causing harm to Mr Leddy on May 6, 2002. The trial had been in legal argument for two days.

Mr Leddy told Mr O'Connell that he was "treated very roughly by a number of gardaí, one who was definitely out of uniform and two others who seemed to be in uniform".

Looking at a screen in the court he said that he could see a baton in the hand of the garda without the uniform. He agreed his bicycle could be seen lying on the ground nearby.

Mr Leddy agreed with Mr Martin Giblin SC (with Mr Breffni Gordon BL), defending, in cross-examinatiuon that he had been shown a video of the event before making his complaint at Pearse Street garda station.

He agreed that he had made no comment to gardaí at that time on the advice of his solicitor.

Asked why it had taken him so long to make his complaint, Mr Leddy replied: "I was concerned that that it would make me vulnerable to harassment by gardaí and that’s why I took a long time to think about it."

Earlier, Dr Eileen Silke, who was Mr Leddy’s GP at the time, gave evidence that she had seen him eight days after the alleged assault.

She said he had complained he was suffering from headaches and that when she examined him she found a small laceration on the back of his scalp. She referred him to the Mater Hospital for an x-ray which came back as "normal".

The trial continues before Judge Yvonne Murphy and a jury of six men and six women.