Penalty points trial of retired Superintendent and gardaí is 'insane' and 'vicious', jury told

David Raleigh

A probe by the Garda National Bureau of Criminal Investigation (GNBCI) that led to the prosecution of a retired superintendent, who is accused of unlawfully interfering in potential or pending road traffic summonses, was “insane” and “vicious”, a barrister for the accused said Thursday.

Eamon O’Neill, is accused of 27 counts of engaging in conduct tending or intended to pervert the course of justice when he was a serving Superintendent in the mid west region between 2017 and 2019.

Mr O’Neill, along with four co-accused serving gardaí, Sergeant Anne Marie Hassett, Sergeant Michelle Leahy, Garda Colm Geary Garda Tom McGlinchey, have denied a total of 39 counts of unlawfully interfering in potential or pending prosecutions involving 26 motorists.

The trial, which is in its eighth week before Limerick Circuit Criminal Court, has been hearing closing speeches from barristers on behalf of the five accused and the prosecution.

The prosecution’s case, led by senior counsel Carl Hanahoe, is that Mr O’Neill gave “preferential” treatment to people he knew or had a close connection with in trying to get them off potential or pending road traffic prosecutions.

Mr Hanahoe argued that “preference” was entirely different to “discretion”, which the court heard was a power available to gardai when using their own judgement on whether or not to pursue a prosecution.

Mr Hanahoe has argued that local superintendents lost the power to cancel traffic tickets in 2014 when this power was reconfigured to the office of a Cancelling Authority in Thurles, Co Tipperary, after the much publicised “penalty points scandal” that was unearthed by garda whistleblower Maurice McCabe.

Mr Hanahoe told the jury that the main reason for attempts to get the motorists off was Mr O’Neill’s friendship or close connection with the individuals - Mr Hanahoe said these people were not on trial.

Mr Hanahoe produced text messages in court which he said clearly showed that Mr O’Neill was using his director's indirect connection with the motorists as the reason for quashing their pending or potential prosecutions.

Sometimes the detecting Garda would be asked in a text if they could “square” the court summonses or if it was the prosecution was by way of a go safe speed detection van, the case would be withdrawn in court by a Garda Court Presenter, Mr Hanahoe said.

The court heard motorists contacted Supt O’Neill, asking for advice and discretion. In turn, Supt O’Neill contacted Garda Tom McGlinchey and Garda Colm Geary, who in turn contacted the investigating garda in the cases. Sergeant Hassett also texted some of the detecting garda members, and Sergeant Leahy “ensured the summonses were withdrawn”, said Mr Hanahoe.

Some of the motorists involved members of the Limerick senior hurling panel, with whom Mr O’Neill was associated, it was heard.

It was a case of “who you are” said Mr Hanahoe, and that Mr O’Neill allowed this “preference” and his “friendship” with others to dictate “who ought to be prosecuted”.

Mr Hanahoe said the four serving accused gardaí, who had no connection to the cases, involved themselves by trying to “persuade” other gardaí not to prosecute the motorist, or in the case of Sgt Leahy had some of the cases struck out in court.

“The evidence is clear; what was happening was preference - pure and simple, and the appropriate verdict on all counts is guilty,” Mr Hanahoe told the jury.

In his closing speech, Felix McEnroy, senior counsel for Mr O’Neill said experienced senior gardaí, including retired Assistant Garda Commissioner Fintan Fanning and retired Chief Superintendent Gerry Mahon, had given evidence at the trial of their concern about relying on text messages in a garda investigation.

Mr McEnroy said when Mr Mahon found out about the GNBCI probe into Mr O’Neill, he was so “concerned” that he wrote a 17-page letter to the then Garda Commissioner and another letter to the then Deputy Commissioner “outlining his serious misgivings”.

Mr McEnroy suggested to the jury they were “not getting the whole story” from the prosecution and that a previous GNBCI investigation into Mr O’Neill, in respect of completely separate allegations not before the court "went nowhere”.

“They don't want me to talk about that. That was one serious mess,” said Mr McEnroy.

Mr McEnroy said Eamon O’Neill had told GNBCI that he had legitimately used a long-established practice of Garda discretion when the allegations of unlawfully squaring summonses were put to him.

Mr McEnroy argued the GNBCI unfairly targeted Mr O’Neill the second time because its first investigation failed, and it had cost a lot of money and resources. Mr McEnroy said this was “outrageous” and “vicious”.

“The crucifixion of Eamon O’Neill has already happened, and this is about the cremation of Eamon O’Neill, and, the other (accused) are the kindling around his feet to ensure the fire captures him and incinerates him as a criminal,” said Mr McEnroy.

Mr McEnroy said Mr O’Neill was regarded as an “outstanding garda” who helped end a decade long gangland warfare in Limerick city, which resulted in 23 murders, but, he said the GNBCI probes had “destroyed” him.

He suggested the GNBCI was “excessive” and it had decided that “if he wasn’t guilty in (the first probe) he must be guilty on this”.

“This is insane, this case has a vicious undertone,” added Mr McEnroy.

Mr McEnroy argued that if Garda management had an issue with Mr O’Neill’s behaviour, it should have made enquiries internally and not pursued a criminal trial. “What on earth has it got to do with criminal law?” he asked.

“The management of An Garda Síochána is in complete disarray if this case is an accurate description of what is going on,” added Mr McEnroy.

He suggested the prosecution case was a “mess”, and that if Mr O’Neill was found guilty it would be “a profound injustice, an assault on the truth and reprehensible”.

Vincent Heneghan, senior counsel for Garda Geary, said his client received a text message from Supt O’Neill asking him to do something and he did it.

“He didn’t think behind it, he did what he was tasked to do. He was a garda and Mr O’Neill was a superintendent. He did nothing wrong,” said Mr Heneghan.

The barrister said Garda Geary must be highly thought of in the force because he had successfully applied for promotion to the rank of Detective Garda after he was suspended on foot of the GNBCI investigation

Mr Heneghan said the role requires the successful candidate to show they have “integrity, decency, bravery”.

Closing speeches by barristers for Garda McGlinchey, Sgt Hassett, Sgt Leahy will be heard from Friday onwards.