Limerick man who ‘terrorised’ neighbours amid land dispute avoids prison term for assault

A COUNTY Limerick man who allegedly “terrorised” his neighbours for months over a land dispute has avoided a prison sentence for assault.

Kieran Daly, aged 36, of Hillview, Cloverfield, Dromkeen received a fully-suspended sentence when he appeared before Limerick District Court in Kilmallock.

He was previously convicted of the assault and public order charges and Inspector Barry Manton confirmed there has been "nothing to report" since.

The incident at the centre of the case occurred in a field near Caherconreafy, Pallasgreen on November 11, 2024 at approximately 8:30am. A previous sitting of the court heard it involved Mr Daly driving a vehicle at his neighbour on the disputed lands.

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Solicitor Michael O’Donnell told the court that Mr Daly is a “very qualified man” who has engaged with probation and counselling services since the incident. “Things are positive,” he stated, adding: "He has a previous good record, he has learned his lesson."

Inspector Barry Manton agreed and confirmed that An Garda Síochána are happy "with how things are going".

Having noted the contents of a probation report, Judge Patricia Harney also expressed her satisfaction with how Mr Daly has engaged with the Probation Service, describing it as “absolutely stellar”.

The injured party, Rory Mooney, was present in court and gave evidence during the brief sentencing hearing.

He said that his family had been “terrorised” for six months by Mr Daly, who, he alleged, had threatened his wife and children.

He told Judge Harney that he would “love” if Mr Daly could be jailed, but Judge Harney said that would not be possible given it was his first offence.

The judge added that “we don’t live in a totalitarian state” and that “people are entitled to dislike each other”.

The court heard that Mr Daly had apologised over what happened and that he is regarded as being at low-risk of reoffending.

After formally convicting Mr Daly, Judge Harney sentenced him to three months imprisonment for the assault, suspending the sentence for 18 months.

The public order offence was marked as taken into consideration.

The suspended sentence was handed out on the condition that Mr Daly has no contact with Mr Mooney or his family.