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FOUR people charged in connection with a public order disturbance at a roundabout in Ennis are due to appear in court again next week.

Ennis District Court heard on Wednesday that the men intend to apply to the High Court for bail.

Bernard McDonagh (45) and Christopher McDonagh (38), Bernard McDonagh Jnr (22) and a 16-year-old boy are alleged to have committed a number of offences arising out of the incident at the Maid of Erin on October 14.

Bernard McDonagh (45), with an address at 1 Ashline, Kilrush Road, Ennis is charged with the assault of John Doherty. He also faces three charges of criminal damage and one charge of dangerous driving.

It is further alleged that Bernard McDonagh (45) drove a vehicle in a dangerous and reckless manner which created substantial risk of death or serious harm to another.

Christopher McDonagh, with an address at 1 Davitt Terrace, Cloughleigh, Ennis, is charged with produc- ing an iron while about to commit an assault. He also charged with possession of an iron bar with intent to cause injury to John Doherty, Martin Doherty and Jimmy Doherty.

The teenager, who cannot be named for legal reasons is charged with possession of a hatchet with intent to cause injuries to John Doherty, Martin Doherty and Jimmy Doherty.

He is also charged with the production of a hatchet while about to commit an assault.

Bernard McDonagh Jnr (22) is charged with possession of an article with intent to cause injury and the production of an article in the course of a dispute.

He is also charged with assault causing harm. Defence solicitor Daragh Hassett said his clients intend to apply for bail.

All three men were remanded in custody to appear at Ennis District Court on November 7. The teenager was remanded in detention to appear in court on November 7. Directions from the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) are expected to be known by that date.

TWO people who damaged a fire alarm system in an apartment block in Shannon have been told their actions could have had “catastrophic consequences”.

In the event of a fire, the alarm would not have gone off at Kincora Apartments after damage was caused to fire control panel and CCTV system on July 7 (2012), a court heard last week.

Amanda Hayes (22) and Shane Collins (22) pleaded guilty at Ennis District Court on Wednesday to criminal damage at Kincora Apartments.

Judge Patrick Durcan described the incident as a “dastardly and appalling offence.”

Ms Hayes, with an address 48 Inis Eagla Shannon and 10 Kincora Apartments, also pleaded guilty to the theft of alcohol at Skycourt Shopping Centre, Shannon on July 19.

Mr Collins, with an address at Woodpark, Newmarket on Fergus, pleaded guilty to handling stolen property at Skycourt Shopping Centre on July 19.

Inspector Michael Gallagher told the court that CCTV had captured both accused damaging the Kincora apartment block.

He said, “This was a very serious incident. If a fire went off, no alarm would have gone off.”

Ms Hayes, who is currently serving a sentence, has 27 previous convictions. Mr Collins has two previous convictions.

Defence solicitor Jenny Fitzgibbon said that Ms Hayes had suffered problems with drug addiction but is doing well in prison.

She added, “She is hoping to stay of drugs but it is a battle.”

Ms Fitzgibbon said the latest offences were a “huge step up” for Mr Collins.

She said there was no justification for the damage caused to the apart- ment block.

Ms Fitzgibbon told the court that both her clients had consumed Xanex and alcohol and had no memory of the incident at the Skycourt shopping centre.

Judge Patrick Durcan said the damage to the apartment block was extremely serious. “It could have had the most catastrophic of consequences,” he added.

Mr Collins was fined € 250 for handling stolen property. Recognances were fixed in the event of an appeal. In respect of the criminal damage matter, Mr Collins was ordered to complete 120 hours of community service.

Amanda Hayes received a three month sentence, consecutive to the sentence she is currently serving. Recogances were fixed in the event of an appeal. Ms Hayes received a one month sentence for the theft from Skycourt. A WOMAN alleged to have stolen € 400 from a primary school in Ennis is due to appear again in court this week.

Eva Makulova (32) with an address at 3 Ardlea Close, Ennis is charged with entering Carrig Donn, Ennis on October 7 (2012) and taking € 2810. Ms Makulova has also been charged with the theft of € 400 from the Holy Family Primary School on September 7 (2012). She is also charged the theft of perfume from Cassidy’s Pharmacy, O’Connell Street, Ennis on September 2 and 3.

Ms Makulova appeared at Ennis District Court on Wednesday. Inspector Michael Gallagher told the court that the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) had directed summary disposal of the case.

Solicitor Tara Godfrey said that she was still awaiting full disclosure from the State.

The case was adjourned for a week. Ms Makulova was remanded in custody to appear again at Ennis District Court on October 31.

A MAN described by senior gardaí as one of the most “prolific burglars” in Clare has been expelled from the country.

Chief Supt John Kerin said that the number of thefts locally have de- creased by 10 per cent since the man was arrested.

He was a non-national living in the county and as such gardaí were able to petition to have him excluded from the country.

“This is something we intend to use more of in the future,” said Supt Kerin.

According to the Central Statistic Office, burglary and related offences had decreased by 3 per cent so far this year when compared to the same time last year.

Likewise robbery, extortion and hijacking were also down by 8 per cent, while theft and related offences stayed the same at 780.

A closer look at the figures reveal that theft from the person has increased by 220 per cent from five incidence in 2011, to 16 cases in 2012.

Superintendent Kerin said the majority of these incidents were in the Ennis area and mostly took place in supermarkets.

People who are doing a large grocery shop often leave their handbags or purses in the trolley and discover when they go to the check out that the purse has been robbed from the bag, the superintendent explained.

The number of car and vehicle thefts also increased during the first nine months of the year from 113 to 130 and theft from shops went up by 25 incidents when compared to the first nine months of last year.

General burglary was down 3 per cent however although aggravated burglary had increased by three incidents to five.

Robbery from premises was up from two cases to five also, while robbery from the person had decreased by one third.

Other thefts had decreased by 10 per cent.

Chief Supt Kerin said that the Gardaí have a detection rate of 65 per cent when it comes to these crimes, a figures that is considered high when compared nationally.

“While one crime is one too many, when compared to other Garda figures around the country we have managed to reduce the number of overall crime,” he said.

THIS Wednesday is D-Day for the Doolin Pier development as An Bord Pleanála come to Ennistymon for the final oral hearings on the much disputed development.

The planning authority will hear comments concerning the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the € 5 million development, which was completed in May of this year.

The development has been delayed for more than two years following objections raised by the local West Coast Surf Club and the Irish Surfing Association (ISA), who say that the development will damage the waves at Doolin and create a dangerous environment for surfing.

The ISA will be afforded the opportunity to address their board and give their opinion on the EIS.

An Bord Pleanála are likely to base the decision on two sections of the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) – one which deals with the impact that the pier will have on the limestone paving at Doolin Pier, and a second which uses hydrodynamic modeling and bathymetric data to determine what impact the pier will have on local currents and wave formations.

Local businesses believe that the planned pier could generate as many as 20,000 extra bed-nights for North Clare each year. This would result in a major boost to the local tourist trade and would likely create a number of new jobs in the area.

If the pier development is given the thumbs-up, construction work will likely not begin until the spring of 2013 with a completion date of early 2014 the most likely.

The West Coast Surf Club have stated on a number of occasions that they are not against the development of a pier in Doolin, but they do feel that the location of the current development will damage local surfing.

Surfing is the fastest growing recreational sports activity in Ireland and thousands of young people take surf lessons in the Clare resorts of Lahinch, Spanish Point, Fanore and Kilkee each year.

EVERY cloud has a silver lining and while Hurricane Sandy could mean devastation for parts of the American east coast, it could mean a miniboost for hotels in Shannon and Ennis.

Hundreds of tourists have already been stranded on both sides of the Atlantic as the hurricane has shut down airports all over the American east coast.

Aer Lingus cancelled all their Monday EI-111 and EI-110 services between Shannon and New York and it looks likely that further cancellations will take place this week.

The airline will announce later today if they will be in a position to operate the service this Wednesday and customers are asked to check their flights before coming to Shannon.

The centre of the hurricane is predicted to hit Philadelphia some time later today and is expected to move north to New York over Wednesday. This could bring about a lengthy closure of airports in New York, strand- ing American visitors in the Clare area for an extended period of time.

The airline has also offered to accommodate anyone affected by the cancellations on a subsequent service between Shannon and New York, at no extra cost.

A spokesperson from Aer Lingus said yesterday that they will continue to keep a close eye on the situation in New York and other American airports in the days ahead.

“Customers who wish to cancel their travel plans will receive a full refund,” said a spokesperson.

“Aer Lingus apologises to all customers affected by these cancellations.”

While there are no official figures for the numbers of tourists who have been forced to spend an unplanned, extended vacation in the Clare area, the effects of the hurricane could leave hundreds of Americans stranded in the Banner.

As many as 1,000 Aer Lingus customers are currently weathering the storm in New York, waiting for the city’s public transport and airports to reopen.

ELEVEN people, including three children, were injured in four separate single-vehicle accidents in Clare over the past seven days – in what has been the worst week on the county’s roads so far in 2012.

A mother and her young child were trapped in their car for almost half an hour on Thursday last, when the car they were travelling in left the road and overturned on the N85, close to Kilnamona.

The incident was reported to emergency services just after 12.30pm on Thursday afternoon but, due to some confusion regarding the exact location of the accident, emergency crews were dispatched to three different locations. Emergency crews from Ennistymon responded to a report of a crash on the R460 between Inagh and Miltown Malbay, while gardaí from Ennistymon responded to an incident, reported to have taken place closer to Ennistymon.

A fire crew from Ennis located the crash on the N85, in the townland of Shallee in Kilnamona. It later emerged that all the 999 calls were in relation to the same incident, but there had been some confusion as to the exact location of the accident.

The mother and child were treated at the scene and were described as being very distressed.

Gardaí in Shannon are investigating a single-vehicle road traffic accident at Ballycasey in Shannon on Saturday night, from which the driver of an overturned truck absconded.

A spokesperson form the Garda Press Office confirmed to The Clare People yesterday that they are still attempting to track down the driver of the vehicle, which was discovered overturned around the Shannon slip road on the M18 at 11.15pm on Saturday night last, October 17.

Gardaí and fire crews searched the area but were unable to find anyone who might have been involved in the incident. Gardaí are understood to be examining the possibility that the driver checked into a local hotel fol- lowing the accident.

A mother and her two young sons had a lucky escape last Monday, October 22, when their car left the road and hit a tree before turning over onto its roof, at Ballyline, on the old Ennis to Galway road.

The woman was driving her two sons, aged three and four, in the direction of Crusheen village, when the incident took place. The vehicle collided with a tree before overturning onto its roof.

Meanwhile, five men were also injured in Ennis on Sunday, October 28, when the car they were driving crashed into a stone wall close to Drumcliffe Cemetery on the outskirts of Ennis. Th e e a rly p a rt o f t h e we e k will b e t yp ic a l No ve m b e r fa re , we t a n d w in d y, b u t c le a rin g b y t h e we e ke n d .

AN IRAQ war veteran from Clarecastle who admitted forging a doctor’s prescription has escaped a prison sentence.

Ross Culligan (25) was told by Judge Patrick Durcan that he was getting ‘the chance he deserves’ at Ennis District Court on Wednesday.

Mr Culligan, with an address at 41 Church Drive, Clarecastle, pleaded guilty to forging a prescription contrary to the misuse of drugs act on dates unknown between February 14 and February 22 (2012) at 41 Church Drive, Clarecastle.

He pleaded guilty to using the forged prescription at Mary Jo Duffy’s Pharmacy, Tesco, Ennis on February 22.

Mr Culligan also pleaded guilty to an offence under the firearms act at Ennis Garda Station on February 23.

The court previously heard that after being brought to Ennis Garda Station, Mr Culligan was found in possession of a .22 calibre bullet. The State accepted that Mr Culligan did not have the bullet for any sinister reason.

The case had been adjourned for the preparation of a report from the Probation and Welfare Services af- ter Judge Patrick Durcan said that he was considering a five-month prison sentence.

Mr Culligan served in the Irish Guards regiment of the British Army.

The court heard he was discharged for medical reasons. Judge Durcan noted that Mr Culligan had previously committed a similar offence and was on probation when he committed the current offence.

He said that Mr Culligan had experienced a lot of difficulties in the past.

Judge Durcan said as a result of his military service overseas, “he (Mr Culligan) saw and was probably involved in terrible things that will be with him for the rest of his life.”

He told the court that he was very impressed by what defence solicitor Shiofra Hassett had said on her client’s behalf.

Judge Durcan remanded Mr Culligan on continuing bail to July 17 (2013), with liberty to the State to reenter at 24 hours notice.

He also requested an up to date report from the Probation services. He added, “I will give you the chance you deserve.”

Judge Durcan said, “Best of luck to you Mr Culligan, you’ll have good days and bad days.”

THE impact of the recession is leading to an increase in the number of victims of sexual assault seeking support in Clare, according to Rape Crisis Midwest.

The service recently reported an 11 per cent increase in requests for support in 2011.

The Ennis Rape Crisis Centre, which is open a year, helps 10 people a week, while 250 people have passed through the doors of Rape Crisis Midwest.

According to Verena Tarpey, Director of Fundraising, stresses brought about by the recession are having a major impact on victims of sexual assaults.

She explained, “The recession has had an impact on people. People lose their jobs or their marriages break down and suddenly things that have happened to them in the past come back to them.

“When people are in difficulty, you will find it has a knock-on effect for other things, such as something that has happened in the past.”

The majority of people seeking help from the service are women but Ms Tarpey says more and more men are coming forward.

She said, “It took a while for the word to get out there that the service was open to men also. I also think that men maybe have more of an issue about coming forward about what has happened to them.

“Maybe men are trying suppress it a bit more and there is definitely a stigma about men coming forward, which is why this event coming up in November is a great way for men to get involved in the centre.”

Ms Tarpey said that while there is a waiting list for services, no person is turned away from the centre.

She explained, “We have a waiting list of about four months, generally. But nobody will ever be turned away. They will be seen immediately once they ring.

“In terms of giving them long-term counselling, they may have to wait a couple of months.”

Rape Crisis Midwest are also rolling out an educational programme in Clare schools, aimed at raising awareness among young people.

Ms Tarpey said, “I think most people would assume that rape is all about [a crime taking place at] 3am down an alleyway by someone wearing a balaclava.

“They are usually the cases that make the headline.

“Rapes are more common in a domestic situation or when it’s someone you bring home or a family relative.

“We’re trying to challenge that myth with teenagers.”

AS the fall-out from Saturday’s altercations during the Clare Minor A hurling final in Sixmilebridge continued on Monday, GAA chiefs in the county were remaining tight lipped about the events until they have time to receive and discuss the referees report from the game.

Pictures from the incident, which occurred thirteen minutes into the second half, flooded the internet on Saturday night and were featured in many national newspapers on Monday morning with much of the focus centering on Clare’s 1995 and ’97 winning captain Anthony Daly, who was prominent in some of the pictures.

ORGANISERS of the upcoming Ennis Trad Festival estimate that the event could generate up to € 2.5 million for the local economy.

A crowd of around 10,000 people are expected to visit Ennis during the festival, which takes places in the Clare county capital from November 8 to 12. Up to 500 musicians will perform at venues around the town for the festival, which is now 19 years in existence. There will once again be a strong international dimension to the thousands of music lovers that will descend on Ennis. An association of American veterans of the Vietnam War and a large group of Swedish music students will be among the throng soaking up the atmosphere.

According to festival chairman, John Rynne, the event will give a pre-Christmas boost to the Clare economy.

He said, “We’re in the midst of this terrible recession and there is a lot of doom and gloom about but we will have a lot of people coming in to the town spending money, spending on accommodation, taxi, pubs, food. There is a lot of money. We reckon that anything up to € 2.5 to € 3 millions is spent in the town and its environs. You will have people coming for the music but also going off to visit other parts of the county.”

Mr Rynne said the festival also offers a unique opportunity to market Ennis to overseas tourists.

He explained, “If you have 10 American tourists going back home telling their friends about the great music they heard in Ennis, that will build up year after year. It all adds up.

“We are spending millions on these advertising campaigns to market the country but at the end of the day the product sells much better than advertising,” he added.

Mr Rynne said the festival received a “fairly slight” response to an appeal for support from local businesses. He said that while it is a tough time for traders, the festival would help to generate a lot of “repeat business”.

He added, “It has a big footprint around the world internationally. It is very well recognised internationally.”