Category: News

THE President of Ireland, Michael D Higgins, has failed to accept an offer made by Clare County Council to host a Civic Reception in his honour, more than three months after the invitation was originally made.

President Higgins, who spent many of his formative years living in Newmarket-on-Fergus, was invited to be honoured by the local authority on November 14 last, but has yet to indi- cate whether he will be interested in receiving the honour or not.

This apparent snub comes after President Higgins topped the poll in Clare during last Octobers election, receiving 20,828 first-preference votes.

A spokesperson from Clare County Council confirmed to The Clare People yesterday that no response, beyond the standard acknowledgment letter for all correspondence, has yet been received from Áras an Uachtarán.

It was confirmed last week that President Higgins will become only the third free citizen of Galway City, joining Ireland’s first president, Douglas Hyde, and Burmese pro-democracy leader, Aung San Suu Kyi. While no official date has been set for this ceremony to take place, it is understood that it will happen before the end of April this year.

The invitation to the Civic Reception was suggested by former Labour councillor Christy Curtin (IND) who yesterday said that he understand that President Higgins has had a very busy couple of months.

“I am very confident that he will come to Clare. He has been a regular visitor to Clare over the years and has visited the Willie Clancy Week up here in Miltown on a number of occasions,” said Cllr Curtin.

“I have no doubt that he will come and see us in his own good time. It has been a very busy few months for him and I am not disappointed that he has not been in touch [with Clare County Council]. I am very optimistic that he will make it down to Clare for the reception.”

AN East Clare ent repreneur is hoping a new online guide can spark a r ush i n tourist bookings n t he Banner Count y.

Eoin O’Hagan recently met with Gover nment ministers to highlight the potential of his website, www. clarevi r t ually.ie.

The website was launched at the end of August 2011 as Eoin saw the potential for a new and innovative way to promote tour ism products, in Clare and t hroughout t he rest of t he count r y.

The prospective visitor logs on to t he site, clicks on t he relevant l ink and watches a 60-second video tour of the selected B&B. He/She gets to see the exterior and interior of t he premises, including some shots of the bedrooms, sitting rooms and dining room.

But, accordi ng to Eoi n, t he most i mpor t ant par t of the video is when t he potential visitor is greeted by t he owner or manager wit h a smile and céad mí le fáilte.

After viewing the video tour, the prospective visitor can then book the product through t he link to the provider’s website. The t agline for the site is ‘Look Then Book’.

Eoin believes the video tours take away any doubts that t he prospective visitor may have about booking accommodation, rest aurants or ot her tourism products through a website.

The father of three, who lives in Scariff, believes the project could also generate employment local ly. He explained, “There is the poten- tial for the creation of highly skilled positions within t he organisation. Trai ned camerapersons, editors, IT and suppor t staff wil l be requi red as the site grows to include the 25 other counties i n the Republic.”

He added, “There is the possibility of 600 video tours in Clare alone. When t his is multiplied by t he other 25 counties, there would be many thousands of videos showing the tour ism products in a way t hat prospective visitors to Ireland would really appreciate.”

Eoin, who is involved in t he Clare Tourism For um, stated that there is huge potential to fur ther develop vi r t ual tours of Clare.

Earlier this mont h, he met with Mi nster of State wit h responsibility for Transpor t, Tourism and Spor t, Michael Ring and Clare Labour TD, Michael McNamara.

In a subsequent meeting wit h Minister of St ate Alan Kelly, Eoin and Deputy McNamara discussed tourism in the mid-west and specifically the potential for promoting angl ing on Lough Derg and sur rounding areas.

A NEW report has highlighted the high rate of male unemployment in Clare. As of December 2011 there were 10,368 people unemployed in Clare. 6,291 men of all ages are unemployed compared to 4,077 women of all ages.

The figures are contained in Clare VEC’s Adult Education Service Annual Report for 2011. The report states that the priority for training and education places should be given to young people under the age of 25 among other groups. The report states that the high rate of male unemployment raises a challenge for adult education services in Clare.

It states, “An analysis of the number of people on the live register in Clare over the past five years shows a high rate of male unemployment which mirrors national statistics. As time goes on the move into very long term unemployment becomes more likely.”

Unemployed people without a Leaving Cert, people on the live register for more than a year and people under the age of 25 are identified in the report as priority cohorts who are most at risk of drifting into very long term unemployment.

The report states, “The high levels of male employment and the markedly low educational qualifications of this cohort are a definite consequence of the downturn in employ- ment specifically within the construction sector and related areas and this raises a challenge for us as an Adult Education Service to develop specific programmes aimed at raising the educational qualifications of men”.

The report cites communication in foreign languages; digital competence; mathematical competence and basic competences in science and technology as among the key skills for employment.

According to the report, 4,352 learners attended programmes provided by Clare VEC Adult Education Service in 2011. 263 attended full-time programmes while 4,089 attended part-time programmes of one or more modules up to a maximum of 400 hours during the year.

In addition, 3,803 clients accessed the Clare Education Guidance Service. The report continues, “Externally we are in the midst of a period of social, political and economic transition while internally our service is preparing itself for structural changes entailed in both the amalgamation of the VECs into Local Education and Training Boards (ETBs) and the emergence of SOLAS, the new further education and training authority.”

Back to Education Initiatives were delivered in 13 locations throughout Clare in 2011. The report states that programmes were delivered to 900 students. Over 40 students sat the Leaving Certificate. The report notes the achievements of an 81-year-old woman who scored an A1 in history. According to the report, the woman is believed to have been of the oldest to have sat the exam in 2011. VEC member Michael Corley praised the work of the adult education services. “It’s amazing the amount of people that are accessing the service,” he added.

A SHANNON man has received a six-month prison sentence for offences committed while on bail last year. Martin O’Callaghan (23) with an address at 156 Cluain Airne, Shannon, pleaded guilty to charges of criminal damage and theft at Ennis District Court on Wednesday.

O’Callaghan was charged with damaging the fly window of a car at Dun na Rí, Shannon on November 1, 2011. O’Callaghan was also charged with taking a wallet, valued at € 55, from the car.

On the same date at Bothar Na Luachra, Shannon, O’Callaghan was found by gardaí to be in possession of a screwdriver with the intention that it could be used in the course of, or, in connection with a theft.

Insp Tom Kennedy told the court that the cost of the damage to the car was € 150. He said that O’Callaghan has 52 previous convictions.

The court heard that the offences were committed while the accused was on bail.

Solicitor Turlough Herbert said that his client had been in the grip of a serious drug addiction at the time.

The court heard that O’Callaghan is currently serving a sentence for his role in an aggravated burglary committed in Sixmilebridge in January 2010. Mr Herbert said that O’Callaghan had not been in contact with drugs since going into prison. He said his client had made admissions to gardaí and had returned with them to the scene of the car break in to help look for the discarded wallet. He said that O’Callaghan, a father of two, wished to apologise to the owner of the car.

Judge Aeneas McCarthy stated that as the offences had been committed while the accused was on bail, then any sentence would have to run consecutive to the current prison term.

In respect of the criminal damage charge, Judge McCarthy imposed a six-month sentence to commence on the lawful termination of the threeyear sentence currently being served by O’Callaghan.

IT TOOK a jury just 36 minutes to acquit a man who shot competitively for Clare, of being reckless to the safety of others when he discharged a semi automatic shotgun during a morning when “the whole community was under siege”.

Dominic Moloney of 38 Cappa Lodge, Sixmilebridge, had admitted discharging the firearm on September 21, 2009, but had pleaded not guilty to “being reckless to anyone being injured or not”.

After a trial that took place over three days at Ennis Circuit Court, Mr Moloney greeted the unanimous not guilty verdict with a mouthed “thank ye, thank ye” to the members of the jury.

The 47-year-old had been charged with discharging a firearm contrary to section 8 of the firearms and offensives weapons act 1990, after he fired three shots – one into the air and two at a wall during an early morning attack on homes in the estate.

Witness for the State Jessica Kelly, who was part of the group of three attacking homes that night, claimed that she had been hit by pellets from one of these shots.

The court heard that on the morning in question a group of “thugs” who were staying at number 57 attacked properties and people, including a disabled woman, using hurleys, bars and slash hooks.

Mr Moloney said he left the housing estate with his wife at 5.50am to go to work in Shannon.

He dropped her to work in Element Six before travelling on to his own job at Fabricated Products also in Shannon.

He was welding for five to ten minutes when his daughter Ciara called him asking him to come home.

He told the court that when he arrived back on the estate there was a van parked in his usual place so he went to the end of the cul-de-sac to turn.

“My intention was just to come back up and go into my house,” he said.

He said he then saw one man come from his left hand side and heard the window of his car break from the right. There were two men carrying bars.

He accelerated, left the estate and returned having driven past the Garda station.

When he arrived back in the estate he said he saw his neighbour Aaron Doherty, better known as Dots.

“Dots came out of his house. He walked down past me and as I came out of the car he said Mary’s windows have been broken and she is bleeding,” he said referring to Mrs Maxwell, who had been attacked and burgled by the gang.

He then saw two men – Gerard and Michael Lynch coming towards him, he said. “They shouted at me ‘We are going to kill you baldy B’.”

Mr Moloney ran inside and got his gun. He put three cartridges suitable for shooting game in it, which had been on the table since the night before. “As I was going out Dots was coming in the door,” he said.

Mr Moloney, who has shot competitively for Clare seven times, told how one of the two men were at his gate and coming in when he fired his gun into the air. The men retreated.

Mr Moloney, his daughter Ciara and Mr Doherty then walked up the road. Mr Moloney told how the men were leaving the garden of number 57 again when he shot at the wall.

He said he fired the third shot because they were going across to Mary Maxwell’s house again “saying they are going to finish the bitch”.

“The girl was inside the house. I fired at the bottom of the wall, again to keep him in, not to hurt anyone,” he said referring to Jessica Kelly.

He said he did not believe he hit her with pellets from the gun.

“Everyone was in fear. I never saw anything like it and I hope I never do. I was in fear of my life,” he said.

Asked by barrister for the prosecution Stephen Coughlan, “Why did you arm yourself. You knew the gardaí were coming. Why not go back into the house and lock the door?”

Mr Moloney said, “They were going to break up the house. I was in fear of my life.

“The only reason I got my gun was because I was in fear of my life and my child’s life.”

“I wanted to keep them inside the wall to keep people safe.”

Mr Coughlan said, “You should have retreated, but you stood your ground. Your ego wouldn’t let you retreat,” to which Mr Moloney replied, “No.”

“They came at me. I didn’t go at them. I had no choice.

“What was I going to do? I was afraid they were going to cut me up,” he said.

Mr Moloney also admitted to cleaning his gun and changing his jumper after the incident.

A FATHER of eight stole a spare wheel after taking a car on a test drive in an incident that “made no sense”, a court has heard.

The incident occurred after the man test-drove a Volkswagen Passat from a garage in Ennis last month. At Ennis District Court on Wednesday, James Sherlock (43), with an address at 16 Childers Road, Ennis, pleaded guilty to stealing a Monte Carlo alloy wheel with a total value of € 420.

Insp Tom Kennedy told the court that Sherlock took a Volkswagen Passat for a test drive from Western Garages, Quin Road, Ennis on Janu- ary 18. The court heard that the accused already owned the same type of car. Insp Kennedy explained that he took the spare wheel from the garage car and replaced it with his own. Solicitor Tara Godfrey said her client had cooperated with Gardai who found the wheel in the front porch of the house. “He cannot explain why he took it” she added.

Ms Godfrey said her client’s wife died in December 2008 leaving him as the sole carer of eight young children. Ms Godfrey told the court that the theft of the wheel was hard to explain given her client already owned a Passat and the family “weren’t short of a bob”. Judge Aeneas McCarthy fined the accused € 400.

THE State’s chief witness was labelled a liar by counsel for the defence in his closing arguments.

In her evidence to the court Jessica Kelly (23), of Lilac Court, Keyes Park, Limerick, told how on the night of September 21, 2009, she was staying in the house of Barbara Lynch. She was going out with her brother Michael Lynch who was also staying there as was his brother Gerard.

She said that during the night the back window was broken in the house. “The boys got weapons and run out the front door. I looked down [the road] and there was a man with a long gun and I didn’t get to see him clearly. Then I got shot,” she said. “I was standing out by the wall.”

She said she received a wound to her leg and went back into the house and lay down.

Defence Counsel Pat Whyms BL reminded Ms Kelly that she faced four charges following the night in question.

The 23-year-old was charged with aggravated burglary, violent disorder, criminal damage and assault causing harm following the night in question and pleaded guilty to the first three halfway through her trial. She said she did so because her solicitor told her to.

Mr Whyms told the court how, yielding an s hook, Ms Kelly had hit Mary Maxwell. He said her evidence to the court differed from her statement to Gardaí.

“You said a BMW car drove down, hit Ger Lynch and knocked him down,” he said.

He recalled how Ms Kelly told gardaí that she was picking up Gerard Lynch when the car returned and a man jumped out with a gun and directed it at her.

“Which of these two cock and bull stories about this incidents do you want the court to believe today? Was what you told the gardaí true?” he asked.

“Yes,” said Ms Kelly, “I just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.”

“No you were not,” said Mr Whyms.

MAYOR of Clare Pat Hayes and TV presenter Bláthnaid O’Donoghue have been enrolled as the first Patron and Friend of Clare Youth Service in a new sponsorship scheme that gives parents, young people and businesses an opportunity to support youth services in the county.

Clare Youth Service currently operates 68 projects in 25 locations throughout the county. These include music projects, youth clubs, certified training, information points, youth cafés, justice work and education programmes. Some of this work is under threat in the current economic climate. The organisation has restructured internally in order to address cutbacks and is now asking the wider community to help maintain its core frontline services.

Individuals and companies can become a Patron for a donation of € 50 or become a Friend for € 20. Friends will receive a car sticker whilst Patrons will receive a certificate for their business premises or home in addition to the car sticker.

CYS chairperson Michael Byrne explained, “There have obviously been serious cutbacks in recent years but we are grateful for the continued support from taxpayer sources. We took an early lead in working with staff to cut hours and rationalise structures where possible. This has led to significant savings but we are at the point whereby frontline services will suffer if income is not increased.”

He continued, “Clare Youth Service has been operating for 43 years. As well as the tens of thousands of young people that have been involved, there have been 2,000 volunteers since 1969. 1,200 young students have received an academic qualification leading to jobs or further training since 1982. In 1986, the Youth Information Service started and has since answered 250,000 queries for young people on important topics. Today, there are 68 youth clubs and projects in the county.”

Mayor of Clare Pat Hayes said, “In these times, we need to back our youth as much as possible and especially to support those with a proven track record in working with them. I am proud to back this venture and would encourage as many Clare people and businesses to become a Friend or Patron of the Clare Youth Service.”

TV presenter Bláthnaid O’Donoghue took part in CYS summer camps before making her way in the world of TV and fashion. She has enrolled as a Friend and is enthusiastic in her backing for the venture,

“Clare Youth Service was a part of my formation that I look back on with great fondness. There was fun, leadership opportunities and a safe place for growth and self-expression.”

To enrol as a Friend or Patron of Clare Youth Service, contact 065 6845350 or enrol online at www. clareyouthservice.org

DOMINIC Moloney was hailed a hero who fended off a mob of thugs, as his account of the morning of September 21, 2009, was supported by the majority of witnesses both for the prosecution and defence.

For many of the witnesses that took the stand in Ennis Courthouse it was an emotional and difficult time, recalling the events that led them to flee their homes in fear.

Robert Maxwell described his neighbour as a hero. The young man told how he was woken up on the morning of September 21, 2009, to the sound of glass smashing and people “roaring up the stairs. It was like a nightmare. It was scary.”

He told how he went downstairs and got the sweeping brush to protect his mother who was being attacked by a man and a woman.

Mr Moloney’s car then came into the estate and the attackers left the house thinking it was the gardaí.

Mr Maxwell told how the assailants continued to abuse his neighbours. “They looked up to my neighbours and said ‘You are next if you are looking out the window.’ It was like a pack of animals. Everyone in the estate was frightened, not just us.”

“All I can say is he [Mr Moloney] is a hero to me. He saved my mother’s life,” he said.

Mary Maxwell, a woman who had suffered a brain tumour and a stroke, struggled to get to the witness box. Describing her age as 50 and a bit, she spoke slowly but determinedly as she battled the affects of ill health.

“I remember all this breaking noise when I was in bed and I came out on to the hallway. I didn’t even bring my walker with me that morning. I thought someone might have fallen down the stairs,” she said.

She said as she looked out into the hall she got a shock as she was hit with a weapon and pinned to the stairs. She told how she was terrified as she was hit in the side with an Shook after already receiving a blow to the head. She received 20 stitches to her face following the attack.

Mr Moloney’s daughter, Ciara (20), struggled to keep the tears at bay as she recalled her fear. She told how she was woken by the sound of breaking glass and after ringing the gardaí, she rang her father who had already left for work.

“I rang my father because the people outside were shouting up at different windows saying you would be next,” she said.

Ms Moloney broke down as she said she was petrified when her father left the estate after the windows in his car were smashed. She called him again and he returned.

“My father was only trying to save people. He has lived there for 25 years,” she said through her tears.

Her father was equally distressed as he watched his daughter give evidence in his trial.

Caroline O’Sullivan, 63 Cappa Lodge, said she was delighted that Mr Moloney had fired his gun, describing the two men and woman attacking the houses as “vicious”.

“He fired a shot which I was delighted for because they retreated back into the house. This had been going on a while. I was terrified to look out the window never mind go outside,” she said.

Lorna McDonald, 35 Cappa Lodge, fought back the tears as she recalled the scene that greeted her in her mother’s – Mary Maxwell – house later that morning. “It was unreal.”

She was visibly emotional as she described how her mother was sitting on the stairs covered in blood. “It was horrible. It was a nightmare.”

Mrs McDonald’s husband Michael McDonald was next to take the stand as a prosecution witness.

“I hadn’t seen anything like that since I was a child. I grew up in west Belfast,” he said of that morning in Cappa Lodge.

“I shot myself and I definitely saw he [Mr Moloney] wasn’t shooting [at] anyone.”

Darragh Devaney, 63 Cappa Lodge, recalled how his father locked all the family into an upstairs room on the fateful morning. Darragh had woken up to the sound of “smashing glass” and two men breaking the windows of the house. There were nine people in the house in total including his father, mother and siblings.

He described how when he went downstairs he saw a slash hook coming through the front door. He was attempting to get his blind brother out of his downstairs bedroom when their father came down and brought them all upstairs.

“He locked us all into an upstairs room,” said Mr Devaney.

Aaron Doherty, 26 Cappa Lodge, known as Dots, was called to check on Mary Maxwell that morning. A gun owner himself, Mr Doherty said there was no question in his mind. He was sure Mr Moloney was not shooting at anyone.

THE President of Ireland, Michael D Higgins, has failed to accept an offer made by Clare County Council to host a Civic Reception in his honour, more than three months after the invitation was originally made.

President Higgins, who spent many of his formative years living in Newmarket-on-Fergus, was invited to be honoured by the local authority on November 14 last, but has yet to indicate whether he will be interested in receiving the honour or not.

This apparent snub comes after President Higgins topped the poll in Clare during last Octobers election, receiving 20,828 first-preference votes.

A spokesperson from Clare Coun- ty Council confirmed to The Clare People yesterday that no response, beyond the standard acknowledgment letter for all correspondence, has yet been received from Áras an Uachtarán.

The invitation to the Civic Reception was suggested by former Labour councillor Christy Curtin (IND) who yesterday said that he understand that President Higgins has had a very busy couple of months.

“I am very confident that he will come to Clare. He has been a regular visitor to Clare over the years and has visited the Willie Clancy Week up here in Miltown on a number of occasions,” said Cllr Curtin.