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A JUDGE has ordered the dismantling of a cannabis grow-house in East Clare that was the subject of a garda raid two years ago.

Judge Gerard Keys made the order at Ennis Circuit Criminal Court as he adjourned sentencing of Bridgetown man Sean Mason.

Mr Mason (37) pleaded guilty to cultivation of cannabis without license after gardaí discovered a “purpose built” and “sophisticated” cannabis grow house at his home in Ballybrack, Bridgetown on October 29 2011.

Outlining details of the operation earlier this month, Garda Francis Brennan of Ennis Garda Station told the court the search uncovered incubators containing 72 young cannabis plants.

One building was fitted out with a tiled floor equipped with drains to take away water and ventilation and lighting systems.

Gardaí also discovered cannabis resin in a lunchbox and a black plastic bag containing cannabis off-cuts.

Mr Mason accepted responsibility for the cannabis growing operation and told gardaí he used the drug for medical reasons.

Garda Brennan said gardaí did not accept Mr Mason’s reason for growing cannabis.

Judge Keys adjourned sentencing to hear the Director of Public Prosecution’s (DPP) view on the seriousness of the offence.

On Thursday, Counsel for the DPP, Stephen Coughlan BL told the court that Mr Mason had grown cannabis for medical reasons.

He said there was no evidence this was part of an organised crime set up.

Adjourning sentence, Judge Keys ordered the complete dismantling of the areas of the premises altered for the growth of cannabis.

He said he wanted to ensure the building could not be used again for cultivating cannabis plants.

“I want it dismantled in such a way to satisfy gardaí that it cannot be used for the growth of cannabis,” he added.

The case was adjourned for mention to the final week of October.

SHANNON Chamber of Commerce has received a big boost this week following the news that its chief executive has been appointed to the board of Chambers Ireland.

Helen Downes was ratified in the post at the Chambers Ireland AGM, held in Dublin last Wednesday, with her appointment announced on Friday last by Shannon Chamber president, Kevin Thompstone.

Congratulating Ms Downes on her appointment, Mr Thompstone said, “It’s a great honour for Shannon Chamber via Helen Downes to have input at board level in a national organisation. Helen’s nomination by the Chambers Ireland CEO Forum for a position on the board, and her existing representation as a member of Chambers Ireland Human Resources Policy Council, is both indicative of the high esteem in which she is held within the organisation, and her ability to make a valuable contribution to strategic considerations.

“Membership of Chambers Ireland board gives Shannon Chamber a forum to make representation on behalf of members and to input their views and commentary on national policy issues being considered by Chambers Ireland for presentation to government and key stakeholders. It will ensure that Shannon’s voice is heard at another key national level.”

About Helen Downes: Chief Executive of Shannon Chamber 2008, Helen Downes has spearheaded many new chamber initiatives to promote and encourage business growth and economic development in the Shannon area. These initiatives, which have also led to increased chamber membership, include a number of EU-focused seminars, a chamber HR forum, a CEO forum, a Business Watch scheme, and linkages with national and international business organisations in both the public and private sectors.

Shannon Chamber currently has over 250 member-companies drawn from a wide cross-section of business sectors that employ approximately 7, 500 people in the Shannon hinterland. Helen is responsible for representing their interests to key influencers and stakeholders, achieved through voicing membership concerns on issues that affect or impede enterprise development at local, regional and national levels

Ms Downes is also an active member of Chambers Ireland’s Human Resources Policy Council.

A SUICIDE prevention and support group for teenagers set up in Clare last year has expanded its focus to include older people, due to an ever increasing need and demand. Mark Winder, who set up the organisation The William Winder Rainbow Foundation with his wife Caroline in memory of their teenage son, said the charitable organisation has expanded significantly during its first year. “We had to expand, we didn’t have a choice. “The need was there, especially among the farming community,” he said. The organisation currently employs 15 specially-trained councillors who provide counselling sessions to peo ple who may have suicidal tendencies. Doctors and Gardaí have also started to refer people to the charitable organisation, set up in memory of a young man who had dedicated himself to fundraising and helping others. “Every suicide I hear about is personal to me,” said Mark who continues to grieve for his 15-year-old son who took his own life before his junior cert exams. “I believe helping people in need is a fitting legacy to our son.” Caroline paid tribute to the many people who support the foundation. “It would not be possible without the community who came out and supported the annual fundraising event again this year,” she said referring to the Mardi Gras Ball held in the Bellbridge Hotel at the weekend. Anyone wishing to contact the foundation or any of its counsellors can do so through the website Williamwinderrainbowfoundation.ie or through their local GP. All calls are dealt with in strictest confidence.

A JUDGE has issued a stark warning that more lives will be lost to addiction if drug treatment services in Ireland continue to be under resourced.

Judge Gerard Keys was commenting following the death of Ennis man James Sherlock Jnr earlier this year.

The 24-year-old wheelchair-bound amputee was found unconscious by his brother near the green of the eighth hole of Ennis Golf Club in August. It is thought Mr Sherlock had spent a period of time squatting in the area.

Mr Sherlock, formerly of Childers Road, Ennis, was a heroin addict who lost both his legs as a result of complications arising from his addiction.

He lived rough for a while in an abandoned squat in Ennis and was awaiting sentence for setting fire to the Lakes Nursing Home in Killaloe on August 20, 2010. Judge Keys had adjourned sentencing for the purpose of ascertaining what help Mr Sherlock could get to deal with his drug addiction and what accommodation could be found for him.

“It is with a great degree of sadness that I read in the newspapers the circumstances of the death of James Sherlock,” Judge Keys said at Ennis Circuit Criminal Court on Tuesday.

“He was a troubled young man with huge problems and with little or no adequately-resourced facilities to assist him in dealing with his drug addiction and the medical complications which arose there from. In this court I said this man cannot be abandoned,” added Judge Keys.

He continued, “I am now compelled to say that until the problem of drug addiction in this country is tackled and a sufficient number of properly resourced facilities put in place by the State, there will be more deaths of this kind and our prison population will increase.

“I passionately believe that if a sufficient number of properly-resourced facilities for drug addiction were established it would radically reduce crime levels, reduce our prison population and save lives.”

He conveyed his sympathies to the Sherlock family.

At James Sherlock Jnr’s funeral in Ennis last August, parish priest Fr Tom O’Gorman also spoke of the dangers of drug addiction.

“Drugs led him [Jimmy] down the wrong path and the shackles that they hold on people can lead to death,” Fr O’Gorman told mourners.

A LIMERICK man has appeared in court charged in connection with a burglary of Tinarana House in Killaloe earlier this year. Jeffrey Lee (41), with an address at Cosgrave Park, Moyross, Limerick, was brought before Ennis District Court on Thursday. He is charged with entering Tinarana House as a trespasser on dates between August 17 and September 24 and committing theft therein. Detective Garda Bernard Casey gave evidence of arrest, charge and caution. He told the court Mr Lee made no reply to charge after caution. Inspector John O’Sullivan sought to have the accused remanded in custody with consent to bail. He said bail would be subject to a number of conditions; Mr Lee must reside at Cosgrave Park, Moyross, stay out of County Clare and Ballina, County Tipperary, and observe a curfew between 11pm and 7am. Mr Lee must also provide his own bond of € 100 and an independent surety of € 1,000. Judge Patrick Durcan remanded Mr Lee in custody with consent to bail to appear against at Ennis District Court on October 16. Legal aid was approved for defence solicitor Tara Godfrey. The property is the home of Gary McNamara and his wife, Michelle. He is the son of Dolores McNamara, the Limerick woman who won € 115m in the Euromillions lottery draw in 2005. The period mansion is located on 270 acres on the shores of Lough Derg. Tinarana was previously owned by Dr Paschal Carmody and his wife, Dr Frieda Carmody. Dr Carmody was acquitted in Ennis Circuit Criminal Court earlier this year of the final remaining charges relating to obtaining money by deception from the families of terminally ill cancer patients.

A MAN who placed stone boulders across the main Ennis to Kilmaley road has been told his actions could have resulted in someone being killed.

The warning came at Ennis District Court on Wednesday at the sentencing of Eoin Kerin (28) who placed the boulders on the Kilmaley Road on November 23 (2011) after a night of drinking.

Last October, Mr Kerin, with an address at Beechpark, Ennis pleaded guilty to charges of criminal damage and intentionally placing a dangerous obstruction upon a road.

A van was damaged when it hit the rocks on the night. The case had been adjourned on a number of occasions and Mr Kerin appeared at Ennis District Court on Wednesday.

Outlining the facts of the case to Judge Patrick Durcan, Inspector Tom Kennedy said the van driver could not avoid the boulders. Gardaí were called and the boulders were cleared from the road.

However Insp Kennedy told the court the rocks and boulders were put back on the road within 15 minutes. Mr Kerin was spotted in a field near the road. He admitted the offences to gardaí.

“What he did was absolutely hugely dangerous”, said Insp Kennedy.

Defence solicitor Tara Godfrey told the court that her client had paid compensation to the injured party. She said there is a low risk of Mr Kerin re-offending.

Ms Godfrey urged the court to adjourn the case for a long period.

Judge Patrick Durcan said someone could have been killed as a result of what Mr Kerin did.

“It is a case that troubles me. It is a serious matter”, he added.

Judge Durcan adjourned the case for a brief period to consider sentence.

When the case resumed, Judge Durcan imposed a fine of € 500.

He said, “I have to convict your client. I have to bear in mind that somebody could’ve been killed. It’s a terrible thing to do.”

Recognances were fixed in the event of an appeal.

MEMBERS of Ennis Town Council have backed a call for the use of Anti Social Behaviour Orders (ASBOs) to deal with the behaviour of what was described last week as a “small group of untouchables”.

ASBOs were introduced in Britain in 1998. They were designed to correct minor incidents that would not ordinarily warrant criminal prosecution.

In a motion tabled at the October meeting of Ennis Town Council, Cllr Johnny Flynn (FG) said the council should recommend a “planned pilot scheme of greater usage of Anti Social Beahviour Orders (ASBO) for the Ennis town centre area by the Gardai and Court Services”.

He said the orders could be implemented against criminal and public order offenders.

“Following a half year review, if the pilot is successful, the scheme would be extended to other areas to deal with scourge of this behaviour by a perceived small group of untouchables,” added Cllr Flynn.

Cllr Flynn told the meeting Ennis has a very low crime rate in comparison to towns like Killarney.

However he said the behaviour of a small group of people is putting the reputation of the town at risk.

“I think this would be the start of a campaign of no messing in Ennis,” he added.

Cllr Michael Guilfoyle (Ind) said attempts to deal with anti-social behaviour had not been helped by repeated cuts to Garda budgets and the closure of stations around the county.

“My sympathy does go out to the gardaí. They are doing their very best,” he added.

Cllr Guilfoyle told the meeting there had been a number of disturbances in Ennis Courthouse over the past year.

He also spoke about an incident that occurred on the Kilrush Road in August when a man in his 20s was brutally assaulted while on his way home at night.

Chairman of the Ennis Joint Policing Committee (JPC) Cllr Paul O’Shea (Ind) said he would support the use of ASBOs in Ennis.

He said, “There is a lot of fear among the community because of this small group of untouchables.”

Deputy Mayor, Cllr Frankie Neylon (Ind) told the meeting the gardai are doing the best they can with limited resources. “I would urge anyone that has any kind of problem to ring the confidential line to the Garda,” he added.

In response to Cllr Flynn’s motion, town clerk Leonard Cleary said it would be referred to the Joint Policing Committee. “Ennis Town Council is working with the gardaí on an ongoing basis in relation to the specific current items raised in this motion,” added Mr Cleary.

THE number of commercial flights in and out of Shannon ai r por t so far this year are up on the same period last year, however the ai r por t has the lowest number of daily flights when compared to Dublin and Cork.

According to the Irish Aviation Authority’s latest repor t, the cumulative number of flights from January to September through t he Shannon ter mi nal has increased by 5. 5 per cent when compared to the same period i n 2012.

While that proves positive for t he local newly independent ai r por t, t he average number of daily flights are still slightly less than its nearest competitor in Cork.

Cork increased its flight numbers in and out of the ai r por t by just 5.2 per cent, slightly less than Shannon, but it maintains an average daily movement of 62 flights.

Shannon is just slightly behind wit h 60 daily movements.

Dublin, which has 88 per cent of the t raffic of the three ai r por ts, also showed an increase of 6.6 per cent of flights in and out of the ai r por t wit h an average of 498 daily movements.

Total flights in Irish ai rspace increased by 0. 8 per cent when compared to September 2012, with the busiest day being September 6, with 1, 557 flights in Irish ai rspace.

IAA CEO, Eamonn Brennan said, “This sust ained growth is ver y en- couraging news for Dublin Ai r por t and t he wider economy. September was also a good month for Shannon, up 5. 5 per cent year-on-year. There is some way to go to catch up wit h previous levels during the peak years but 2013 is a step in t he right di rection.”

On a cumulative basis, commercial ter minal t raffic for Dublin, Cork and Shannon ai r por ts for Januar y to September 2013 was up by 2.7 per cent, compared to the same period in 2012.

A TOURIST who almost lost his sight in a “brutal” unprovoked New Year’s Day assault after coming to the aid of a woman in Ennistymon has been praised for his “gallantry”.

Dublin man Richard Mullen and his wife were returning to their holiday home in the early hours of January 1 when they came across a “young woman pinned to the ground by a thug” on Circular Road, Ennis District Court heard on Thursday.

Mr Mullen told the court he saw a young man standing over a woman with his hands over her throat. Mr Mullen said that after helping the woman to her feet, he received a blow to the head from William Donovan (20).

“I went down like a sack of spuds”, the 62-year-old recalled.

The court heard that after returning to Dublin, Mr Mullen received treatment for acute glaucoma caused by a swollen eye and almost lost his sight.

Passing sentence, Judge Patrick Durcan said he had never come across such a brutal assault in his time on the bench in Clare. He said Mr Mullen had required complex medical treatment to save his sight.

“He (Mr Mullen) was set upon in the most appalling, brutal and thuggish fashion,” said Judge Durcan who had considered refusing jurisdiction of the case.

Mr Donovan, with an address at Clancy Park, Ennis, pleaded guilty to assault causing harm and other offences including burglary at Wilsons’, O’Connell Street, Ennis on March 22 (2013).

He also pleaded guilty to stealing clothes, cash and a mobile phone from a man who had gone for a swim in Dough Beach, Lahinch on August 28.

Mr Donovan, a father of one, stole an Apple laptop, four Nikon cameras and € 87 from Wilson’s.

He also pleaded guilty to breaking the window and stealing a jacket from a Citroen Berlingo parked behind Wilson’s.

Detective Garda Claire O’Shaughnessy said CCTV footage and DNA evidence from blood found on the broken car window were used to identify Mr Donovan. She said Mr Donovan had not admitted breaking into Wilson’s

Another man has also been charged in connection with the burglary, the court heard.

Storeowner Richard Wilson recalled finding doors to his premises smashed open on the morning after the burglary. He told the court the burglary had an effect on he and his wife. “I was very conscious of security before but even more so now,” he added.

Mr Donovan has 42 previous convictions. On March 28 he committed a string of offences in Ennistymon and Lahinch that included the theft of two Jack Russell terriers.

Defence solicitor Tara Godfrey said her client apologises unreservedly to the victims of his crimes.

She said Mr Donovan had significant problems with drink and tablets in the early part of the year.

She said Mr Donovan had taken steps to address his problems and had cleaned up his act since March.

“I would ask the court to accept this is a man who has changed”, added Ms Godfrey.

Judge Durcan said the devastation Mr Donovan visited upon Wilson’s was akin to something you would see in war-torn Libya and Syria.

“He broke down doors and gates and smashed his way in the very worst John Wayne manner you’d see in the movies of the Wild West”, he added.

He imposed sentences totaling 14 months on Mr Donovan. Recognances were fixed in the event of an appeal.

A FATHER of 10 whose reckless behaviour sparked a violent disturbance at a roundabout in Ennis last year has claimed he is ready to make peace.

Bernie McDonagh Snr (46) has said he bears no ill feeling to the Doherty family after tensions between the former friends and neighbours spilled onto the streets of Ennis last October.

Mr McDonagh, with addresses at Ashline, Ennis, and Nashes Boreen, Cork City, told gardaí, “I’ve no illfeeling towards the Dohertys but they’d want to sort themselves out.”

Earlier this month Ennis Circuit Criminal Court heard Mr McDonagh told gardaí that he would be willing to sit down and talk with the Dohertys.

“Peace is the only way forward,” said Mr McDonagh, who is related to the Doherty family through mar- riage.

Bernie McDonagh Snr last week received a four-year prison sentence for his role in the incident at the Maid of Erin roundabout on October 14, 2012. He pleaded guilty to driving recklessly against the flow of traffic in a manner likely to cause harm. He also pleaded guilty to three counts of criminal damage.

Mr McDonagh Snr drove his car the wrong way around a roundabout nine times in pursuit of a Hiace van containing members of the Doherty family.

His son Bernie McDonagh Jnr (21), with address at Ashline, Ennis, and Nashes Boreen, Cork City, also received sentences totalling four years at Ennis Circuit Criminal Court on Thursday.

Father of one Bernie McDonagh Jnr, with an address at Nashes Boreen, Cork, pleaded guilty to the production of a Stanley knife during the course of a dispute; violent disorder and assault causing harm to John Doherty.

Olympic boxer Kieran Joyce gave evidence on Bernie McDonagh Jnr’s behalf earlier this month. Mr Joyce, who competed for Ireland at the 1984 and 1988 Olympics, told the court Bernie Jnr was a “very respectful young fella” and talented boxer. He said Mr McDonagh Jnr coached kids at the Sunnyside boxing club in Cork City and had hopes of competing at the next Olympic games.