A judge has told a secondary school student – who assaulted a man in his 60s at a protest against a rumoured new asylum centre – to bring his forthcoming Leaving Cert results to court.
At Ennis District Court, Judge Alec Gabbett directed that Ross Culligan, 20, bring his June Leaving Cert results to court in September before the case is finalised.
The judge told Culligan: ‘If you come in here with your Leaving Cert, that might be the final icing on the cake on what is a very positive probation report.’
He added: ‘I will put this back to September and see how the Leaving Cert goes – that is key.’
Tara Godfrey, solicitor for Culligan, replied: ‘No pressure.’
The judge said: ‘There is no need for pressure because he will do fine in the Leaving Cert.’
Ms Godfrey agreed, saying her client is studying Irish and history at an Ennis school.
Culligan, of Connolly Villas, Ennis, Co. Clare, pleaded guilty to assault causing harm to local man Michael Neylon at Scool, Corofin, Co. Clare, contrary to Section 3 of the Non-Fatal Offences Against the Person Act, on May 22, 2023.
Judge Gabbett told Culligan: ‘Put this behind you – you have the capacity to do that.’
Ms Godfrey said there ‘is a social media link in the case and there is this world that people become involved in that doesn’t reflect who they are’.
She said: ‘I can’t help thinking about Netflix’s Adolescence and also radicalising.’ She said Culligan ‘is now apolitical’, adding: ‘He deeply regrets involving himself with this group.
‘Under any other circumstances, he would not be coming into this court. My client is ashamed of any part he had. He is in any other way non-criminal and I would ask you not to criminalise him here today.’
Judge Gabbett said the probation report was very positive, showing Mr Culligan expressing remorse, and that he has taken responsibility for his actions and is genuinely motivated to not reoffend.
Previously outlining the State case against Culligan, Sergeant John Burke said a blockade was mounted against a rumoured centre for asylum seekers and the accused was one of those protesting.
Sgt Burke said that the alleged injured party, Mr Neylon, engaged with people in the blockade ‘and there were verbals back and forth’. He said that during the course of this, Mr Neylon was allegedly assaulted by Culligan and suffered a facial injury.
Sgt Burke said the blockade was mounted over false reports and there were no plans to establish accommodation for asylum seekers at that location. The protest in Scool, Corofin, took place after it was organised via social media, in response to, as it turned out, false claims that asylum seekers were going to be housed in the area.
These came about after a video was circulated online in which men toured a house with multiple beds in each bedroom, claiming it was going to house asylum seekers in the locality.
At the time, then-Minister for Integration Roderic O’Gorman ruled out the use of the Scool property for asylum seekers.
On RTÉ Radio, Minister O’Gorman said there had been ‘detailed misinformation’ about the property being put into use.
Judge Gabbett adjourned the case to September.
