Man refused bail in “high speed” pursuit case

A man who is alleged to have been involved in a "high speed" pursuit that concluded with the deployment of a stinger device near the M1 Motorway in January, has been refused bail by the High Court during a busy court listing

Matthew Ashby (32), with an address in Balbriggan, in Dublin, is charged with nine counts of dangerous driving, driving without insurance and driving without a license at various locations in north county Dublin on January 11 last. The case is due to come back before the District Court next week.

Mr Ashby was admitted to bail after his arrest but failed to abide by a requirement that he sign on daily at Balbriggan Garda Station 20 times between January 13 and March 1 last.

He lost a High Court bail bid today with Ms Justice Mary Rose Gearty holding that Mr Ashby had "flouted" the chance already given to him.

Outlining his objections to bail, Garda Keith Alfred told Jane McGowan BL, for the State, that Mr Ashby was arrested following a series of alleged incidents from Balbriggan to the M1 Motorway on the date in question, that lasted approximately 20 minutes.

Gda Alfred said the incidents involved allegations of driving at high speed, mounting the footpath, overtaking on the wrong side of the road and driving at "high speeds" that reached 180km/hr at one point.

He said two young children were in the rear of the vehicle during the alleged incident which only came to an end when a stinger device was deployed to puncture the vehicle's tyres.

Gda Alfred said no conditions of bail could be imposed to satisfy the gardaí.

Ms Justice Gearty said her hands were tied due to Mr Ashby's history of committing "very serious offences" and the risk posed to the public.

She said no conditions of bail such as a cash lodgement, curfew or a signing on requirement could "reassure" her.

The case was one of 35 High Court bail applications listed in the Criminal Courts of Justice (CCJ) building before Ms Justice Gearty on Wednesday. Many of the applicants were represented by solicitor and counsel, though some lawyers were handling multiple cases.

Around 60 people were present in court 17 of the CCJ when the list was called at 11am, including lawyers, gardaí, prison officers and court staff, with most of those present maintaining distance from one another. Relatives and friends of some of those seeking bail were also present in court.

- This story was amended on March 19, 2020