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A DISTRICT COURT judge has said prolonged vile and evil abuse hurled at gardaí by an arrested retired sergeant was the worst he had ever heard.
Joseph Kiely (63) of Old Golf Course Road, Tullycullion, Donegal Town claimed to have a cancer curse. He told three gardaí they would die of cancer within five years. The defendant also told a woman into whose car he crashed that cancer would visit her. Tragically, the woman has since died of cancer.
Yesterday’s sitting of Donegal District Court heard that Kiely was arrested for drink driving following a collision at Quay Street, Donegal Town on 11 October 2015.
Sergeant Oliver Devaney attended the scene along with Garda Sean Rogers.
They found a Ford Mondeo driven by Shirley Walsh of Ballintra in the main carriageway approaching Donegal Town. Kiely’s Nissan Almera was at a right angle to the Mondeo. Both cars were damaged. Kiely had been exiting a carpark when he collided with Walsh.
Sergeant Devaney said: “I spoke to him and asked him for his driving licence. He said ‘This is a set-up. It is orchestrated. She crashed into me.’”
Both drivers were then breathalysed. Walsh passed the roadside breath test, while Kiely failed.
Sergeant Devaney arrested the defendant.
“He said the to the lady in an aggressive tone ‘Cancer will visit you,’” said the sergeant.
Kiely was taken to Donegal Town Garda Station. During the obligatory 20-minute observation period which precedes a blood, breath or urine test, Kiely was highly abusive.
Sergeant Devaney said: “He told me ‘Cancer will visit you. I have the power of cancer over you. Your offspring will get cancer. You will all be dead within five years.’”
The comments were aimed at Garda Rogers, Garda Doherty who was also present, and Sergeant Devaney.
Garda Rogers then gave evidence.
“He said he had the tinker’s cancer curse that he got in a dark place in Connemara,” said the garda.
He said if I had offspring they would all die kicking and screaming of cancer. And he said I would die of cancer within three years.
Kiely signed all documents at the station with the words “cancer curse”.
When the test was carried out, Kiely showed a reading of 51mcg of alcohol per 100ml of breath.
Changed
Counsel for the defence Sean McGee acting for solicitor Catherine Boner of JP Sweeney & Co asked Garda Rogers if he had ever worked with Kiely.
The garda replied that he worked under Kiely when on overtime shifts. He said as a sergeant, Kiely had been kind and intelligent. But something had changed in the intervening years.
In considering sentence, Judge Kilrane said: “I was in practice for 34 years as a solicitor and for almost 10 years I have been in my present position. I have never heard such vile utterances out of anyone in custody. Shocking, vile abuse and not a murmur of apology.
“It is the worst I have ever come across.”
Under oath, Kiely claimed gardaí turned a blind eye to his being harassed. He told the court that he had submitted a 100-page file to Garda HQ on the matter of a campaign of intimidation.
He did not apologise for his comments.
The judge sentenced Kiely to two months in prison, fined him €500 and disqualified him from holding a driving licence for two years.
“The reason for the sentence is the extreme aggravating factors on the night in question,” said Judge Kilrane.
Like a big judo team! Oh well loads of golds to come let’s go
Seeing those chefs is making me hungry!
@Jack Hayes: lol, that’s exactly what I was thinking, thought they were providing the catering to the irish squad.
It’s awful, looks like a mix of a karate uniform and something out of the Salvation Army
I was hoping someone would share my thoughts.
I have not been disappointed.
Terrible.
Its nice to see cookery added as a sport. Kitchens can be dangerous places.
Why does the theme from Love Boat pop into my head?
They look like extras in a psychiatric hospital drama and I’d bet they were made in some sweat shop in the Bronks. They’re almost as hideous as Sinead’s wax head.
A great honour.well done and best of luck to all our team at the Olympics
A hood over the head and they would pass for the Klu klux Klan.
tiresome should have gone with something more traditional, nothing Irish about it. A nice tracksuit or a shirt/chinos combination would have been much better. Opportunity missed.
@Raymond Dennehy: Yes. Sino-Spanish textile and design is … “Traditional” and “Irish”.
I think I missed the part where Ireland had the opportunity, freedom and wealth-luxury to develop their own indigenous fashion over the past Millennium of British Occupation and coerced cultural and linguistic assimilation
¯\_(ツ)_/¯
However. Yes. The “4 leaf clover” and “shamrock” is not only an Americanism, but is very much worn-out Americanism at this stage.
Probably we could have done something like non-tartan or Celtic-design embroidered arisaid plaides (worn entirely differently to that of Scots) with Tara brooches with Olympic, County and/or individual symbolism.
…I see nothing wrong with the whites though. White is the anti-Sectarian “Peacemaking” segment of our National Flag. Thus it is a loud statement for Ceasefire and Peace in Palestine and Ukraine.
@Raymond Dennehy: Shirt and chinos as a missed opportunity haha. On you go down to Galvin for men, get yourself a rigout and leave the fashion to the fashionable!
@Raymond Dennehy: Australia, has gear,,next time get the Australia’s to make one
Top Chef?
Reminds me of a Simpsons episode where Homer was on charge of waste control..
Mad how a pro golfer walking with flag of an amateur comp. Mad really
@Robert Doogan: Lad, professional athletes have been allowed to compete at the Olympics since the 80s, although it’s up to each sports federation to make a final call on that. Do you think Rhasidat Adeleke is an amateur ? Her estimated net worth in 2024 is between 2-5 million dollars. And best of luck to her.. Do you want to go through the entire Irish team in terms of who’s proffesional or not .. or is it just Shane you want to have a pop at ?
@Brian: It probably would have been safer for Adeleke if nobody had ever thrown out a very AmeruKKKan “net worth” figure that absolute imbecilic Irish (read: Eastern European+German+Italian Fascists living in Ireland) Racists will interpret as Liquidity. As actual cash rich. As: “next time we see her round Tallaght, let’s beat the crap out of her and rob her Credit cards”.
@Pink Freud: LOL.. and that’s got what to do with my post exactly? .. I mentioned another Irish athlete to highlight a point about professionalism in the Olympics/Irish team.. You’re the one who’s trying to bring race into this.. I see an Irish woman.. What ever you see or want to project is your problem pal.
@Robert Doogan: Time to come into the real world. Where have you been living
@Brian: @Brian: Chill out, Brian. I think athletes should not get paid. It’s not the same as going to actual work is it? Its just like P.E class back at school, although, on a much bigger scale. It’s hardly like going to a double maths or science class. Nightmare!!
Just seen them on the six o’clock news and they look even worse and more ridiculous on television.
It is the worst I have ever seen. All I can say if that is considered fashion forward I will stay in fashion past or present. Just terrible
Let’s hope Ireland matches their uniform with Medals
Absolutely dreadful, no doubt some well connected individual collected a shedful of loot for these monstrosities!
I see nothing wrong with any component targeted in the comments. I think it’s great that she considered so much around symbolism and ethnic identity. But the Americanisms of “4 leaf clover”/”shamrock” is well worn out many years ago. Perhaps she is too long in USA, or is associating with too many plastic paddies, and is far too influenced by yankee mis-perceptions of “Irishness” and has begun losing touch with core Irish symbolism and long lost historic cultural fashions interrupted by Colonial Occupation?
Frankly. One cannot just walk up to a County Heraldrly and simply re-write it.
Doing so, erases it.
It is tantamount to a “cleansing” of the indigenous identity.
Like re-writing the tricolour by exchanging Orange for Purple, Brown for Green, and Black for White. Then lobbing a Marsupial into the centre of it for no apparent reason.
However. These are details that should be seen up close – and nobody has published them **yet** (wtaf lads!?) – and, yennow, they’re a bit of fun, a bit of leeway and “artistic licence”.
Probably, the only component I really have a beef with is the fact that the patches are….patch-y.
I *do* appreciate the artistic representation of “grasslands of Ireland” through “fringing”.
But…
They seem like an after-thought.
Like a grubby fixer-upper of a multitude of mistakes in stitching or template cutting.
They look like they weigh. Like they are rigid and heavy on the arm and irritatingly in the way of free unencumbered upper limb movement.
Or, they also sort of look like a toddler came along and smacked a dose of giant stickers on everyone and everyone is just going along with it ‘for the toddler’.
Perhaps if the patches had introduced the Green?
A bit more green.
Just enough to be distinctly Irish – from a distance…..on a boat….on the Seine
But let’s ask the Athletes what they think of it.
Because what we think, doesn’t really matter.
The Athletes are the ones wearing them.
Norway
Thought the Olympics was a sport competition, not a fascist contest.
@Ciaran O Donoghue: fashion??
I thought I was watching masterchef
Gosh, golly, gee whillikins and wow.
VERY slow news day!
“Medication time”
Give them a tea towel to put on their heads, and they would pass for the management of an Arabian airline.
They’re approaching Liverpool 1995 FA Cup FInal suit level with those things.
SHAME what a shame, no way Lowry represents the Olympic spirit, he cowarder out of Rio because mosquetoes ! He’s like his english plantation ancestors, an opportunists !
The Mongolian one… What’s the big Deel?
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