Law - Thurles Information

Man Charged With Murder of Thurles, Co. Tipperary, Soldier.

A man has been arrested and charged with murder, following the death of a Tipperary man, at his home in west London last weekend.

Mr James ‘JJ’ Donnelly aged 45, and a native of Childers Park, Thurles, Co Tipperary was located dead at his home in Station Road, Hayes, Hillingdon, London, after police were called to his address, around 10:00am on Saturday July 15th last.

We understand Mr Donnelly was located at the address with a slash wound, before being pronounced dead at the scene.

Following the discovery, police officers arrested a man a short time later, named as Mr Leo Price, with an address at Blair Close, Uxbridge, on suspicion of his murder.

The 22-year-old accused was taken to a west London police station where he was later charged with one count of murder and three counts of assaulting an emergency worker.

The deceased Mr Donnelly is a former member of the Irish army and served as a peace keeper overseas.

Visa-Free Travel Further Suspended For People With Refugee Status.

Government extends temporary suspension of the operation of the European Agreement on the Abolition of Visas for Refugees (Council of Europe).
Visa-free travel arrangements for Ukrainian nationals fleeing the war unaffected.

The Government has decided to extend the temporary suspension on the operation of the Council of Europe Agreement on the Abolition of Visas for Refugees, to be reviewed in 12 months. The suspension, which in effect means that people with refugee status require a visa to travel to Ireland rather than travelling visa-free with their Convention Travel Document, was originally introduced in July 2022.

The decision to introduce visa requirements for those with refugee status was taken in light of evidence of people applying for asylum in Ireland, who had already received refugee status in another European country. The Government agreed last year to review the suspension in 12 months.

The visa-waiver arrangements for people fleeing the war in Ukraine remains unaffected.

Tánaiste, Minister for Foreign Affairs and Minister for Defence, Mr Micheál Martin TD, said “This decision has been taken by Government in the context of unprecedented pressures on our international protection system. It is not a decision taken lightly but it is the right one for Ireland at this time to ensure the integrity of our immigration system, to avoid any undue pressure on systems that are already under strain and to make sure that those who need protection in Ireland can get it and get it quickly.”

Minister for Justice Mrs Helen McEntee said: “This is a carefully considered decision that we believe is necessary to protect the integrity of Ireland’s immigration system in the context of continued pressures on our international protection and accommodation systems. The visa waiver I introduced for people fleeing to Ireland from Ukraine remains unaffected. Ireland’s commitment to protecting and assisting those in need remains steadfast. We are committed to upholding our international and EU obligations towards international protection applicants and refugees.”

Ireland continues to see high levels of applications for international protection when compared to pre-pandemic levels. Before the suspension of visa free travel arrangements was introduced in July 2022, there was a 191% increase in applications by the end of June 2022 compared to the same period in 2019.

Notwithstanding the increase in applications, the International Protection Office has made significant progress in increasing the numbers of decisions made and significantly reducing processing times.

Minister McEntee also recently updated Cabinet on the modernisation programme and also on the accelerated procedure for applicants from safe countries of origin.

Last November, new accelerated procedures for those who arrive in Ireland from safe countries seeking International Protection were introduced.
The changes have ensured that a first instance decision is made within three months in such cases, a significant reduction from a norm of 17 to 24 months last year. The numbers arriving from these countries has significantly decreased.

Since last November, the numbers arriving from these countries have decreased from 210 applications in November to 64 in May this year – a drop of almost 70%. It should be emphasised that the continued imposition of a visa requirement will not prevent travel to Ireland by 1951 Convention document holders. Genuine travel plans will be facilitated through standard visa arrangements.

Since the introduction of the suspension, there have been 803 Convention Travel Document visa applications, of which 697 were granted and 105 refused.

Limerick Killer Wayne Dundon Attacks Tipperary Jailed Inmate.

Limerick murderer and drug dealer Mr Wayne Dundon has been detained on the punishment landing of Portlaoise Prison. Mr Dundon was transferred from Mountjoy jail following a fight with fellow 27 year old Tipperary prison inmate Mr Stephen Coveney Ryan on Monday morning, July 10th last.

The fight we understand, which turned into a mass brawl, saw a blade being produced; forcing prison staff to immediately intervene. The brawl ended with four prison staff being hospitalised with non serous slash wounds, while Mr Coveney Ryan, is understood to have sustained a slash wound to his neck, requiring some 20 stitches.

An Garda Síochana were notified following the event, which prevents the Irish Prison Service from further commenting on their ongoing investigation.

Mr Dundon is regarded as one of the most volatile prisoners ever, within the current prison system, and is serving a life sentence since 2014, for the murder of innocent Limerick business man and arcade owner Mr Roy Collins, back in 2009. Mr Dundon is regularly caught in posession of mobile phones, using same reportedly to mastermind plans, from behind bars, to regain his control of the drugs trade on the south side of Limerick City. On arrival at Portlaoise prison, not surprisingly, he failed a high security metal test and is suspected to be carrying a mobile phone internally.

Tipperary man Mr Coveney Ryan is currently serving a four year sentence, having pleaded guilty to trying to choke his pregnant girlfriend and threatening to chop her up, after she refused to eat a meal he had cooked.

New Bill Strengthening Laws Around Consent & Court Character References Published.

‘Honest belief’ that a victim had given consent will no longer be a defence in rape cases.
Character references must be given on oath or via affidavit in sexual offence trials.
Bill delivers on key reforms in ‘Supporting a Victim’s Journey’ to improve the criminal justice system for victims.
Establishment of new coordination framework to help victims of human trafficking.

The Minister for Justice, Mrs Helen McEntee TD, has secured Government approval to publish a wide-ranging new Bill that strengthens the law around sexual offences and improves protections for victims of sexual offences and of human trafficking.

Among the main provisions of the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences and Human Trafficking) Bill 2023 is a strengthening of the law in relation to consent. At present, a person can be found not guilty of rape if they honestly, but mistakenly, believed that they had the consent of the victim.

The law is subjective. In effect, the alleged perpetrator can claim they are not guilty of rape, because they honestly but mistakenly believed they had consent. This new Bill from Minister McEntee, is a key element of her Zero Tolerance Plan to tackle Domestic, Sexual and Gender Based Violence will change this. The question now will be whether the belief is one that a reasonable person would have held in the circumstances, rather than whether such belief was honestly held. This belief must be objectively reasonable rather than subjective.

Where the question of reasonable belief arises in a trial, the jury must have regard to the steps, if any, taken by the accused to ascertain whether the victim consented to the intercourse.

Minister McEntee said: “One of my key priorities as Minister for Justice is tackling domestic, sexual and gender-based violence and better supporting and protecting victims of crime.
The Criminal Law (Sexual Offences and Human Trafficking) Bill 2023 is a key piece of legislation to deliver on these priorities.
It will strengthen the law around consent in rape cases, requiring that an alleged perpetrator must have ‘reasonably believed’ that they had consent and removing the current defence of ‘honest belief’. A subjective belief that a person had consent should not be sufficient to be used a defence.
This is in line with recommendations of the Law Reform Commission.”

Another change in this Bill is strengthening protections for victims as regards character references in sexual offence trials, another commitment from Minister McEntee’s Zero Tolerance plan.
This Bill will provide that if a person wants to give a character reference for someone who has been convicted of a sexual offence at their sentencing hearing, the reference must be given on oath or via affidavit.
Currently if a witness is called to court to provide character evidence, this evidence is given under oath.
However, written testimonials are not sworn. Minister McEntee’s Bill provides that when a person has been convicted of a sexual offence, character references presented at sentencing must be made via oath or affidavit. This will ensure that the person providing the reference swears to the veracity of their statement and can be called before the court for cross examination. In effect, it will mean character reference letters will no longer be able to be read out in court unchallenged, if warranted.
The purpose of including this provision in the Bill is to protect the victims of sexual crimes from further traumatisation during the sentencing hearing.

The Minister has now received Cabinet approval for these changes, and she has also worked with Senators Regina Doherty, Lisa Chambers and Pauline O’Reilly on the issue.

Minister McEntee further stated: “The use of character references can often cause further trauma for victims and it is clear to me that we need stronger rules around how they can be used in court.
This legislation will introduce a requirement for character references in sexual offences cases to be made under oath or affidavit, rather than by an unsworn letter to the Court.
This means that the person who provides the character reference can be cross examined if necessary.”

The Criminal Law (Sexual Offences and Human Trafficking) Bill 2023 will also deliver on key reforms in ‘Supporting a Victim’s Journey’ to improve the criminal justice system for victims.

These include:

Separate legal representation for victims of sexual assault if there is an application to question them on their previous sexual experience;

If this application is granted, the barrister representing the victim will continue to represent the victim during the questioning;Ensuring anonymity for victims in all trials for sexual offences;

Providing anonymity for the accused for certain sexual offences;

Updating the definitions for publish and broadcast;

Repeal of statutes that provide that the verdict or decision in trials be announced in public.

Minister McEntee said: “We are delivering a number of the recommendations from the O’Malley report relating to legal representation for victims if there is an application to cross-examine a victim about their previous sexual history in sexual offence trials and including ensuring victim anonymity in all trials for sexual offences.
These are all issues that we know can further victimise, re-traumatise and deny justice to survivors of sexual assault, and I determined to see these important protections legislated for introduced as soon as possible.”

The new legislation will also implement recommendations by the Defence Forces Independent Review Group (IRG). The IRG recommended amendments to the Defence Act 1954 to ensure that persons subject to military law who commit sexual offences in this jurisdiction will be dealt with by An Garda Síochána and the civilian courts rather than by courts-martial. This Bill gives effect to those amendments.

The Bill will also put a revised National Referral Mechanism (NRM) in place for identification and support of victims of human trafficking.

The National Referral Mechanism is the framework through which the State identifies and supports victims of human trafficking. At the moment, An Garda Síochána is solely responsible for identifying victims of human trafficking.

Under the new NRM, multiple other relevant Departments and agencies will be designated as competent authorities to identify victims and will also allow civil society organisations supporting victims of trafficking to be designated as Trusted Partners.

Minister McEntee continued: “This new approach will make it easier for victims of trafficking to come forward, be identified and access advice, accommodation and support.
The reality is that some victims of trafficking, because of interactions they may have had with law enforcement officials in other jurisdictions, have a perception that police cannot be trusted. This may prevent them from identifying themselves to An Garda Síochána as victims, ultimately limiting their access to supports and justice.
The new approach acknowledges other State bodies – outside of An Garda Síochána – and NGOs have a role in identifying victims of human trafficking and referring them to the NRM, through which identified victims can get the necessary supports.”

The published Bill will now be presented to the Houses of the Oireachtas, where it will be debated.

Male, With Thurles Address, Accused Of Murder.

Accused is alleged to have brought sofa down on head of his mother’s intoxicated partner, causing his death.

The deceased man, Mr Jonathan (John) Ustic, a native of the UK, had been located dead, on September 24th 2017 last, in a rented terraced house, situated at No 51, High Street, Skibbereen, Co. Cork.

Mr Andrew Nash, latter aged 43 years, and formerly holding an address in Thurles, Co Tipperary, pleaded not guilty to the charge of murdering Mr Ustic.

It was alleged that a sofa was lifted and brought down repeatedly on the head of the 51-year-old man, who was lying defenceless on the floor of his rented residence, thus leading to his eventual death.

Senior Counsel for the Prosecution, Mr Seán Gillane presented a jury of seven men and five women with an outline of the allegations in the case, same being made against the accused in the trial held at the Central Criminal Court, presently sitting in Cork, presided over by Mr Justice Michael McGrath.

The late Mr Ustic had been living with his long-term partner Ms Suzanne Fenton, who has sadly also since died. Latter was the mother of the now accused Mr Andrew Nash.

On Sunday 24th, the accused had received a phone call from his mother. On entering her place of residence Mr Nash, it was alledged, had gone upstairs and physically struck Mr Ustic a number of blows, causing an injury to his cheek. The parties in the house left sometime after that, before returning to High Street, Skibbereen, Co. Cork at 7.40pm; with the late Mr Ustic having consumed a considerable amount of alcohol. Mr Ustic was pulled violently out of the car, striking his head off the ground in the carpark area, as a result of which he suffered further injury. He was left abandoned in a prone position on the carpark grounds, causing passers-by certain concerns, before being carried into the house, apparently insensible, by Mr Nash and a companion Mr Gillane.

According to Mr Gillane, Mr Nash attacked Mr Ustic while he was on the ground. He stamped on his face, sliced his ear with a broken bottle, beforen lifting a sofa that the defenceless Mr Ustic was lying next to, bringing it down repeatedly on the now deceased mans head and chest area.

On the Monday morning following the alleged assaults, which had occurred on the previous evening, the alarm was raised. Emergency services, on arrival, pronounced Mr Ustic dead at the scene.

The cause of death was described, following an autopsy report, as caused by blunt force trauma to the head, neck and chest, with acute intoxication also being a contributory factor.

When interviewed later by Gardaí, Mr Nash accepted that he had given the deceased a couple of slaps, but denied inflicting the injuries that had brought about his death.