Guard tells Tipperary court he does not know the colleague he is accused of assaulting

A Killarney garda has told Thurles District Court that he does not know the garda member he is accused of assaulting.

Patrick Curran (35) of Spunkane, Waterville, county Kerry is charged with assault causing harm on March 25, 2022, at the Templemore Garda College.

The incident is alleged to have happened the night before the Royal visit to Cashel in 2022.

Some gardaí stationed in Cashel had stayed the night at the college and had been socialising in the town, the evening before. 

RECALLING

The recent sitting was the second hearing of the case.

At the first sitting, the court had heard evidence from the investigating officer, Garda Samantha O’Dowd and the complainant, Garda John Burke.

Acting for the defendant, Donal Cronin BL argued that, as Garda O’Dowd’s evidence differed so much from the complaint, that it should be clarified for his client, which is the accusation against him.

He asked the court to allow him to recall the witness for clarification.

Acting for the State, prosecutor Michelle O’Connell objected, arguing that nobody gets a second chance to cross examine a witness.

Judge Elizabeth MacGrath ordered that the witness be recalled, but questions must be confined to matters arising from Garda O’Dowd’s evidence.

Mr Cronin asked Mr Burke to explain why Garda O’Dowd had given evidence that he had been dragged into a room and assaulted when that is not what he alleges.

Mr Burke told the court that Garda O’Dowd was “wrong on that point”.

He said he has been in the position of investigating incidents such as this one, and it is “hard to get everything right”.

Mr Burke told the court he was attacked out of the blue and believed it could have been because he called Mr Curran a “f**king d**khead.”

“I was there, and I know what happened,” said Mr Burke.

Mr Cronin put it to the witness that his client had not assaulted him. Mr Burke responded saying:

“That is incorrect. I did not assault myself.”

Mr Cronin began a question about another witness, but the prosecution objected, and Judge MacGrath agreed and ordered they move on.

A NIGHT OUT

Garda Patrick Curran denies having assaulted Mr Burke. Mr Curran told the court that at the time of the incident he was a new arrival at Killarney Garda Station, having been transferred from Mountjoy.

He was staying at the Garda College as he was on duty in Cashel the next day.

On the evening of the incident, Mr Curran had gone to dinner at Murphy’s Pub, Templemore, with his Killarney colleague Garda Cillian Fitzmaurice.

Mr Curran told the court that he had no interaction with Mr Burke prior to the incident and did not know him from work.

He said that Mr Fitzmaurice did and spoke to him briefly while paying for dinner but did not introduce the two men.

Mr Curran and Mr Fitzmaurice went on to Maher’s and then met up with a group before having a drink in Pollys.
However, Mr Curran returned to the college at 12:19am on his own, and this was confirmed by CCTV footage.

Mr Curran told the court that he went straight to his room, which was LO5, and got ready for bed.

While brushing his teeth, he heard “raised voices” coming from outside.

At first he first ignored it, but when it continued, he went to investigate.

Mr Curran said he saw that the light was on in L05, where Mr Fitzmaurice was staying, and that was where the voices were coming from.

Mr Curran told the court he opened the door, held it open with his leg and asked the two men inside what was going on.

He said he never entered the room. Mr Burke then left the room, passing Mr Curran “at a rapid pace”.

“At no point did I apply force to Mr Burke. I wouldn’t have the character to do that,” said Mr Curran.

Mr Curran said he asked Mr Fitzmaurice if he knew why Mr Burke was in his room, and he replied that he didn’t.

Mr Curran returned to his room, but before he went to bed, he called Mr Fitzmaurice to check on him again and remind him to set his alarm. Mr Fitzmaurice repeated that he did not know what was going on, but that he would find out tomorrow, said Mr Curran.

Mr Curran said that Garda O’Dowd, who was operating security at the college, then knocked on this door and asked him why he had called Mr Fitzmaurice.

He told her it was to make sure Mr Fitzmaurice had set his alarm, and he did not mention the incident.

The next day, Mr Curran said he returned his room key, speaking again briefly to Garda O’Dowd before heading out to Cashel to carry out his duties for the Royal visit.

No concerns were raised to him in Cashel.

When he returned to work in Killarney on Saturday, March 26, Mr Curran said there were rumours about what had happened at the college. Mr Curran said it was the following day before his name was mentioned when summoned by his sergeant.

His superior told him that he and Mr Fitzmaurice were being accused of assaulting another guard at the college.

He told the court he was “absolutely shocked” to have been accused.

Mr Cronin put it to Mr Curran that Mr Burke had said he called him a “d**khead”, and that was supposedly the motive for the assault.

Mr Curran replied: “I was a guard in north inner-city Dublin. Something like that wouldn’t rile me.”

Mr Cronin said that there was also a second “parallel suggestion” that an unnamed assailant had dragged Mr Burke into the room before assaulting him.

Mr Curran said you would have difficulty dragging someone into one of the rooms as you would have to hold open the heavy fire door at the same time.

Ms O’Connell asked Mr Curran if he had an explanation for Mr Burke’s injuries and he said he didn’t.
He said that the situation was “unusual” but that he did not witness an assault in the room.

Mr Curran also said, on questioning from the prosecutor, that the case was not clear. Mr Burke had described one set of events while Garda O’Dowd another.

ALTERCATION

Mr Fitzmaurice gave evidence that he woke up in the middle of the night with Mr Burke standing over him.

He said while he had known Mr Burke from training, they were not friends and confirmed he had spoken with him briefly earlier on in the night but could not recall the conversation.

Mr Fitzmaurice said he left the pub before Mr Curran and returned to his room, where he turned on both the room light and the reading light above the bed, before going to sleep.

Mr Fitzmaurice accepted that he had consumed five pints that evening but said he was not drunk.

Mr Cronin asked if it was possible that another guard’s evidence that she saw Mr Fitzmaurice in the corridor returning to his room drunk and had fallen over was correct.

Mr Fitzmaurice said she may have seen him but denied having fallen over and said had no injuries consistent with haven taken a fall. He said he had remained “in control” at all times, and nobody had raised concerns to him about his behaviour.

He said that he had returned earlier than his group and was woken up by Mr Burke after he had gone to bed.

“I woke up and John Burke was leaning over me,” said Mr Fitzmaurice.

Mr Fitzmaurice told the court that he was startled when he woke to find Mr Burke beside him.

He pushed him back “out of his personal space” and asked him what he was doing.

Mr Fitzmaurice alleges that Mr Burke then pushed him in return, causing him to fall back, hitting his head on the reading light.

Then Mr Curran opened the door, asked what was going on, and Mr Burke left.

When Mr Curran left, Mr Fitzmaurice said he saw that the light was broken and there fragments of glass on his bed.

He told the court he did not know how Mr Burke had been injured but acknowledged it may have been from this incident.

“I was stunned by the whole interaction with John Burke,” said Mr Fitzmaurice.

Mr Cronin put it to him that the alleged assault was “vicious” and included Mr Burke being pinned to the bed, struck and an unnamed assailant trying to “gouge his eye”.

He also pointed out the second account where Mr Burke was dragged into the room and assaulted.

Mr Fitzmaurice told the court that Mr Curran did not assault Mr Burke.

Neither he nor Mr Curran had dragged Mr Burke into LO4, and he did not hear Mr Burke call Mr Curran a “d**khead.”

Ms O’Connell put it to Mr Fitzmaurice that other evidence suggested that he was so highly intoxicated that he was unable to find his room. And she said evidence from Garda O’Dowd was that he had been sick in his sink.

Mr Fitzmaurice denied that he was so intoxicated he could not find his room and said he was not sick.

“I don’t accept that judge,” said Mr Fitzmaurice. Mr Fitzmaurice told the court that he became aware of the accusation when he returned to Kilarney.

He too spoke with his sergeant, but that it was August before he learned the outcome of the investigation from Inspector Andrew Lyons. He asked his superintendent whether his complaint was investigated, and his superior told him it had not because it was made in a statement under caution and was not an official complaint.

Mr Fitzmaurice said he then made an official complaint.

NO PROBLEMS

The court heard evidence from Mr Curran’s supervisor in Cashel. The sergeant was supervising eight guards in a 200m beat during the Royal visit but was usually stationed at Kilrush Garda Station.

He told the court that he met Mr Curran and had not noticed any injury, nor had he any issue with his conduct on the day.

“I had no problem with him whatsoever, and he did his duties as asked of him,” said the sergeant.

Ms O’Connell asked if he had looked at Mr Curran’s hands. The sergeant said he did not carry out an examination, but he would have noticed if Mr Curran had marks on his hands consistent with an altercation.

The court also heard evidence from Sgt David Howard, who was of Killarney Garda Station at the time of the incident.

Sgt Howard told the court that he was over unit D, where both Mr Curran and Mr Fitzmaurice were stationed.

He said that on Saturday, March 26, he “ran into” Mr Burke’s supervisor, who told him about the accusation against two members of his unit. Sgt Howard later spoke with Mr Curran and Mr Fitmaurice. He told the court he did not see any marks on

Mr Curran’s hand consistent with an altercation. Sgt Howard told the court Mr Curran was shocked to have been accused.

“To put it this way, he almost fell out of his chair, he was so shocked,” said Sgt Howard. And he said he reported this and the accusations to his superintendent, as was his obligation.

Ms O’Connell put it to Sgt Howard that it was not appropriate for him to have carried out an investigation.

She asked him if he was not concerned about compromising the integrity of the official investigation. Sgt Howard disagreed saying it was a HR matter.

“It is 100% incumbent on me to probe that” [a complaint against his guards], said Sgt Howard.

Judge MacGrath asked the sergeant if this was a disciplinary matter or a formal investigation.

Ms O’Connell clarified that the sergeant had called it an investigation in his statement. Sgt Howard replied:

“It wasn’t to carry out the investigation. It was a HR thing.”

Sgt Howard told the court that there was no indication that Mr Curran had been involved in an altercation and that it was his job to report all he found to his supervisor.

MINUTES MISSING

The court also heard evidence from Inspector Andrew Lyons who was attached to Thurles Garda Station when he received the complaint.

He took statements from all parties, collected photos from Mr Curran, Mr Fitzmaurice and Garda O’Dowd, as well as the CCTV from the college and Murphy’s Pub.

Inspector Lyons read out for the court statements made by Mr Curran and Mr Fitzmaurice. Those statements were consistent with the evidence given in court by both men.

However, one statement was missing a four-minute section, which was captured on video and played for the court.

That footage showed gardaí asking Mr Curran if he could account for Mr Burke’s injuries to which he replied he couldn’t and: “I don’t know why he pinned it on me.”

The guard responds that the complaint and Mr Curran’s statement are “not even similar,” like “chalk and cheese”.

Inspector Lyons said that following his investigation, he received DPP instructions to prosecute Mr Curran.

He arrested the guard in June and took him to Templemore Garda Station. Mr Cronin asked Inspector Lyons why Mr Fitzmaurice’s complaint against Mr Burke was not investigated.

Insp. Lyons told the court that as it was made in his defence it wasn’t considered an official complaint, and Mr Fitzmaurice, as a guard would know this.

PUT BACK

Judge MacGrath put the matter back to April 5 to sit in Nenagh District Court to re-review a section of CCTV footage.