Woman living on streets tried to bite garda’s arm

By Liam Heylin

A woman tried to bite a garda and verbally abused him as a “scumbag” at the height of one of several public order incidents.

Nicole Cremin, aged 19, from Mallow, Co Cork, wept in Cork District Court yesterday as she faced sentencing for a number of drink-related public order charges.

Frank Buttimer, solicitor, said: “She is in a very volatile position and she is at risk. She has a serious problem with alcohol until she takes responsibility for her problems.

“She was quite distraught down in the custody area this morning.

“Her capacity to remember things is limited.

“It was difficult for her to remember details of these incidents outlined to her, including the guards literally finding her crawling around on her hands and knees on Paul St.

“My client implores me to submit that it would not be a custodial sentence even though she accepts there is a litany of offences.”

Judge Olann Kelleher asked Cremin n directly: “Do you have a problem with drink?”

She replied: “Big time.”

Cremin, of no fixed address, is originally from Mallow. She said it is harder than people think to live on the streets.

Judge Kelleher said he would adjourn sentencing for a very short period for her to live with a relative in Mallow and come up a definite plan for how she proposes to address her alcohol problem.

She was remanded on bail until Tuesday. The judge said if there is information that she consumed alcohol in the meantime, she will end up in custody.

She admitted engaging in threatening behaviour and being drunk and a danger on June 8 at Paul St.

Inspector Brian O’Donovan said on the occasion shortly before 10pm, she was trying to bite the arm of Garda Michael Kiely, calling him and his colleague “scumbags and pricks”.

In another incident, also at Paul St, on January 21 there was a large group of youths drinking and urinating in public.

When Cremin was directed to move by Garda Xiao Ma, the defendant said: “Fuck you, you bastard, you fucking chink, telling me what to do.”