Sentencing hearing adjourned for jealous lover convicted of assault

A young father who threatened to kill himself and his ex-partner when he suspected she was seeing someone else after they had broken up has had his sentencing adjourned for six months.

Derek Menton (aged 26) pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to assaulting Ms Lindsay Dargan, smashing her mobile phone and making threats in person and via text message to kill or cause serious harm to her on March 23, 2008.

Menton, of Avonbeg Drive, Tallaght, also pleaded guilty to assaulting Sergeant Michael Leahy at Dodder Valley while violently resisting arrest the following day.

Judge Patricia Ryan postponed Menton’s sentencing until November to allow for the preparation of a more extensive probation report.

Giving evidence directly to the court, Menton said that his threatening and abusive behaviour was out of character and that he regretted very much what he had done.

Menton told his defence counsel, Mr Paul Carroll BL, that he had since reconciled with his ex-partner and was now on good terms with both her and his son.

Menton told Mr Carroll that he also paid a weekly stipend to his partner for the support of his son.

Garda Diane Swift agreed with Mr Paul Carroll BL, defending, that his client’s violent outburst had come about because he saw text messages on her phone from another man shortly after their relationship ended.

Gda Swift revealed that Menton, whose 11-year-old brother died shortly before the incident, began squeezing his ex-partner’s jaw while she was still holding his child after he saw the text messages on her phone.

Gda Swift told Mr Pieter Le Vert BL, prosecuting, that Ms Dargan ran upstairs at her father’s home and had time to put the baby on a bed, before Menton caught up with her, squeezed her jaw again and punched her in the ear.

Ms Dargan managed to leave the house with the baby and drive off towards her own home but Menton pursued her in his car, overtook her, took the keys from her ignition and threatened to take the baby’s passport.

Gda Swift said Menton followed her home, grabbed the baby’s passport before his ex-partner had a chance to hide it from him and then ripped up one belonging to Ms Dargan.

He took his child but Ms Dargan tracked him down at his father’s home, where he argued with her and said he would kill her and then kill himself.

Gda Swift told Mr Le Vert that Menton continued to threaten his ex-partner, saying he would haunt her from his grave, via text the next day before he was arrested in the Dodder Valley Park area.

Menton made various threats to kill the three arresting gardaí and assaulted Sgt Leahy while resisting arrest.

He claimed in interview that his ex-partner was preventing him from seeing his child.

Mr Carroll submitted that his client’s outburst came about when he suspected his ex-partner of seeing another man and that he had been on good terms with her prior to the incident.