Man says he would 'rather go to hell than back to prison'
A NEWCASTLE West man who stole bottles of alcohol from local stores on four separate occasions and caused a disturbance after he was found in the middle of a road pleaded with a judge to not send him to jail because it was his "New Year's resolution" to stay out of trouble.
John Ryan, 29, of Sharwood, Newcastle West, has 80 previous convictions for offences ranging from theft to public order.
He received a six-month suspended prison sentence at Newcastle West Court last Friday after admitting to charges relating to incidents that took place in the town between last August and December.
During the case, he took to the stand and made an impassioned plea to Judge Mary O'Halloran, stating that he would "rather go to hell than back to prison".
The court heard that last December 6, a motorist driving over the Bridge of Tears near the Cork road roundabout found Mr Ryan in the middle of the road, and stopped to check if he was all right. He got into the back of her car and refused to leave.
The driver called the gardai, who on arriving at the scene found Mr Ryan punching the back of a headrest. He was arrested, but continued to be threatening and abusive.
Last December 19, Mr Ryan entered the local Tesco supermarket and picked up a bottle of vodka worth j8.67 and left without paying. The bottle was recovered. Last December 12, Mr Ryan entered the Centra shop on the St Mary's Road at 4.30pm and stole a bottle of vodka. Staff contacted the gardai, who identified the defendant using the store's CCTV footage.
Last October 13, Mr Ryan entered the Carry Out off-licence on Bishop Street, picked up three bottles of alcohol and attempted to walk out without paying.
When confronted by staff, Mr Ryan said: "I can't pay, I'm late for court, don't call the guards" and walked out.
The court also heard that, last August 21, Mr Ryan took two bottles of alcohol from the store without paying, despite being stopped by staff.
Solicitor Michael O'Donnell said that Mr Ryan was "going through a very bad patch with drink" at the time, and on each occasion Mr Ryan "was well out of it". He said that the accused had always admitted fault, had paid compensation to the relevant stores and had made it his "New Year's resolution" to not be in court again.
Mr Ryan then took to stand to speak in his own defence, and told Judge O'Halloran that he "went through a bad patch" at the time. "It's a new year, and I have a child. I'm asking you, don't put me back in jail. I'd rather go to hell than back to prison."
When Judge O'Halloran put it to Mr Ryan that he had "tormented business people" across the town, he said that he "will never ever again".
She asked him when he had last taken a drink, to which he answered: "Christmas Eve".
Judge O'Halloran gave Mr Ryan a six-month suspended sentence and ordered him to enter into a probation bond for two years. "If you appear before the court again in that time, you will be going to prison," she warned. “Fool me once, shame on me. Fool me twice, shame on me doubly.”
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Weather for Limerick
Tuesday 22 May 2012
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Light rain
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