Young woman attacked in bathroom queue for Dermot Kennedy concert at Thomond Park

A MOTHER and daughter were convicted of assaulting a young woman in the queue for the bathroom at a Dermot Kennedy concert in Limerick in 2023. 

Rosaleen Rice, 47, and her 27 year old daughter Caithlin O’Brien, both with an address at Kileely Court, Prior’s Land, Limerick, contested the charge of assaulting a woman who was known to them at a hearing at Limerick District Court. 

The victim gave evidence that on Friday night, she was walking towards the bathrooms before the concert began in Thomond Park stadium, July 7, 2023. 

The woman said that she was minding her own business when Rosaleen Rice taunted her, saying “Where’s your mother, 5B?”, which was disclosed to the court to be a reference to the psychiatric wing in University Hospital Limerick.

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The victim tried to walk away, and then was “grabbed by the hair, pulled to the ground and punched by the two women”. 

Regaling the impact that the crime had on her, the victim said that she suffered the loss of a fingernail and had to take antibiotics for a resultant infection on her left hand. Pictures of the victim’s injuries were circulated to the court. 

The young woman then received assistance from paramedics at the venue and offered tickets from the staff for another night at the concert. She then proceeded to be picked up by her father and left the concert “distraught”. 

The victim also added that the pair “have been trying to cause trouble with my family for years”, and Ms O’Brien said the ill will has been “going on ten years since I’ve been in primary school”. 

Both Ms Rice and O’Brien staunchly denied the evidence of the complainant. In response, Prosecuting Inspector Martyn Wallace questioned why Rosaleen refused to give a statement to a garda regarding the incident, particularly considering that the women claimed to the court that it was them who were assaulted by the victim. 

Defending Solicitor Donal Cronin interjected that it was his client’s right not to give a statement should she wish, and Mr Rice said that the gardaí have never helped her family in the past. 

Considering the evidence presented to her, Judge Valerie Corcoran said that she believed the victim offered “credible” evidence, and said she found the court evidence of Ms Rice and Ms O’Brien “far less credible”. The judge convicted Ms O’Brien and Ms Rice of section three assault causing harm, and recommended that the pair engage with a restorative justice programme, considering that the pair came before the court with no previous convictions.