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.
The city dweller may not be aware of it, but there is a powerful personage whose influence for good or evil in rural Ireland is so great that I doubt if Dail Éireann could even stop him/her in their train. I refer to the village correspondent (‘Corrs’), who is a proud and pontificating part of Ireland’s provincial weekly newspapers and who rules his realm with courtesy, charm and cuteness.
He has come to his profession usually after many long years writing verse or worse, on all manner of people, places and objects, prior to the editor of the weekly signing him on for a remuneration of a few euro a week. But the money, such as it is, means nothing (and is indeed almost nothing), to the country ‘Corrs’. It’s being a ‘Corrs’ that matters (honour before honours), and being one is akin to having the village Mayoral chain of office.
‘Corrs’ could be a verse maker, farmer, poet, playwright and newsmonger or indeed all of these professions. He is at once, like all good honest newspaper folk who do their job without fear or favour; the most feared and loved in the parish. He is also more likely to be the recipient of verbal abuse, than a Staff Reporter on his paper. Being a great mixer, he was often nearest to the anger of him or her who received six months suspended for viciously attacking a harmless lamp post.
“Man receives six months suspended sentence, following attack on Thurles lamp post”.
Indeed, if a Staff Reporter wrote a court report about a character in the ‘Corr’s’ village then the ‘Corrs’ was nearest to the revenge of the defendant. And no sign at all of danger money for the job!
You see, when the village man’s private business becomes public knowledge at the local District Court, where no nonsense Justice Jailward presides, it’s a safe bet that the door of the ‘Corrs’ may be pounded upon that night. It’s no use the ‘Corrs’ telling the angry central character at that day’s District Court drama that he does not cover court cases. He will be branded as “being all the wan as that shower and of the same colour and bad breeding”. They are not pushed about such delicate details. Any scribe’s face will do when their blood is up. All that hassle for a man or woman who is not a member of the National Union of Journalists. They should strike a special NUJ medal for such unsung heroes of the Irish countryside, servants of democracy, after all “fair play is bonny play”.
In the scribe’s village on the Monday of every week you might see a fine flock of pilgrims filing along the boreen by the bog to the editorial cottage of the Scribe. Many would come away happy after Scribe informs them that their daughter’s 21st birthday party photograph will get an airing in the following week’s paper or the wedding anniversary report or obituary or engagement will be in the week after. Others who regularly file down that same well-trodden path, with their news bits, include the secretaries of the village community groups such as the GAA , ICA, Macra na Ferime, ICMSA, the darts club, the marbles association, the set-dancing group, the dramatic society, parish council or group water scheme.
But there is also a queue of long faced men and women, whose solemn presence lingers in the air of the Scribe’s lair, long after they have departed his abode. These are the folks who are about to be mentioned or have been already named as defendants in the court columns of the “Weekly Whatsit”. These mercy seekers can receive no mercy from Scribe in the matter of having their names omitted from ‘the monthly honours list’, as Scribe calls it. For the ultimate arbiter is the newspaper editor, even if Scribe occasionally puts in the good word and character reference for a ‘dacent auld soul who wouldn’t harm a fly and is good to his mother‘, but in the company of good-for-nothing scamps had a pint or more too many, on the night he struck that bleddy lamp post, which is always in everybody’s way anyway. And all this hassle for a man who is not a member of the National Union of Journalists and whose post carries no pension, holiday entitlements or bonuses, whatsoever. The NUJ should strike a special medal for the village scribes of Ireland, who are at the coalface of the battle to preserve democracy, decency and Press Freedom in Ireland. ‘Corrs’ are beyond corruption and brown envelopes and it’s well-known such honesty and transparency puts him head and shoulders, in status above everybody else in the parish. For with him there was no hidden agenda. A fact is sacred and commentary is free.
Many years ago I attended a Drama Festival in Thurles, Co. Tipperary. I was a little nervous and just starting out in the business of journalism. But if I suffered from lack of any self-esteem, a Muintir na Tire man soon put that right. He said: “This is Tom Ryan and he is a member of the Press. No matter what, be nice to the Press.” It made sense. Pressmen and women are human and if you bite them, they’ll bite back like any newshound. Be nice and kind to them; ‘butter and jam them up and they’ll cover you in acres of flattering column inch’. It’s only human nature after all. ‘Corrs’ have a brilliant memory for the scandals, vandals, matches, and mismatches and all manner of events and people. He is omniscient. He has a good sense of humour also, as any scribe must have to survive. No harm to keep in with him.
Tom Ryan, ”Iona”, Rahealty, Thurles, County Tipperary.
A Tipperary farmer has been given a 12-month prison sentence following a workplace fatality, which happened on his farm at Coleman, Fethard, Co. Tipperary, back on June 26th, 2016.
On that date, a Telehandler; [same machine widely used both in agriculture and industry], then being used to carry out work on the farm, went out of control before overturning, resulting in one farm employee losing his life and another employee suffering serious injuries.
The owner of the farm had pleaded guilty to charges of being in breach of the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005 and the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work (General Application) Regulations 2007.
At Clonmel Circuit Court, South Tipperary on Thursday last, July 6th, the farmer was sentenced to 12 months in prison, for failing to manage and conduct work activities in such a way as to ensure, so far as was reasonably practicable, the safety health and welfare of his employees at work.
The Health & Safety Authority confirmed that the Telehandler was found to be in a dangerous condition, unsafe and unfit for use, with brakes, accelerator cable, transmission selector, cab door and seat belt not properly maintained.
They add that it is essential that all employers make sure that operator training is provided to all workers and that risk assessments are carried out in advance of the work activities commencing.
Pre-deceased by his parents James and Sarah, sister Mary (Quinlan); Mr Cummins passed away unexpectedly, while under the care of staff at St. Luke’s Hospital, Kilkenny City, Co. Kilkenny.
His passing is most deeply regretted and sadly missed by his loving family; brothers Thomas and Donal, sister Helen (Shorley), nephews, nieces, sister-in-law Joan, brothers-in-law Michael and Tom, cousins, the Matthew Bourke community, neighbours and many good friends.
The extended Cummins family wish to express their appreciation for your understanding at this difficult time and have made arrangements for those persons wishing to send messages of condolence, to use the link shown HERE.
‘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.
This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish.AcceptRead More
Privacy & Cookies Policy
Privacy Overview
This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
Recent Comments