Suspended sentence for man seen wielding a hatchet at Hanover Bus Park
Photo for illustration purposes
A CARLOW man who was seen wielding a hatchet in the local bus park was handed a suspended sentence and told that it was time to “grow up” when he appeared before Carlow District Court last week. Gary Doran, 8 Springfield Park, Burrin Road, Carlow pleaded guilty to unlawfully possessing a hatchet at Hanover Bus Park, Carlow on 1 June last year.
Inspector Conor Nolan told the court that gardaí received a phone call from a member of the public about a man wielding a hatchet in the bus park. He said that when the gardaí arrived at the scene, they searched 25-year-old Mr Doran and found the hatchet in his rucksack. Inspectpr Nolan told Judge Peter White that the defendant had 80 previous convictions and that he had previously served a six-month custodial sentence.
Solicitor Joe Farrell said that his client hadn’t been before the court “in a while”, that he’d usually be intoxicated but that his time in custody seems to have worked. He also said Mr Doran told the gardaí that he had the hatchet because he was going camping.
Judge White told the defendant that being in custody was a “wake-up call” for him and that “being your age, it’s time to cop on”.
He then sentenced Mr Doran to four months’ imprisonment but suspended it fully for six months to give him “an opportunity to stay out of trouble”.
“You’re a grown man now,” said the judge to Mr Doran.
