Gardaโ Superintendent Accused of Assault Following Incident at Dublin Bar
A non-jury trial is underway concerning allegations that Garda Superintendent Gavin O’Reilly assaulted Emma parks at โthe Penny Lane bar in Dublin. The court has heard testimony โคregarding the incident and the subsequent arrest of Superintendent O’Reilly.
The prosecution’s case centers onโฃ Ms. Parks‘ account of being struck by โSuperintendent O’Reilly after she held up her phone. defense counsel, Mr. Orange, argued that his client did not know what was being heldโ in front of him, only โseeing an object “shoved in his face”โ and reacting by hitting it away. โHeโ further suggested Ms. parks was seeking a reaction when holding her phone. Ms. Parks refuted these suggestions, maintaining her phone was primarily held close to her chest.
Two gardaรญ, Eoin Naughton andโ Graham Johnson, testified about โthe scene following the alleged assault. Garda Naughton, stationed at Store Street at the time, stated that โคSuperintendent โO’Reilly was “roaring, shouting and threatening” upon their arrival. He alleged โคthe accused threatened to have the officers lose their jobs or beโ sued, and even threatened to urinate on the street. Garda Naughton initiallyโ stated he was unaware the arrested man was a Garda superintendent, as he had no identification.
However, under cross-examination, Garda Naughton could not recall a trainee garda informing him at the scene that the arrested man was โขrecognized as โa Gardaโข superintendent fromโค the 2023 annual Pride parade. There was also disagreement regarding โthe timing of the arrest, with theโค defence suggesting it occurred within 40 seconds,โข while Garda Naughton initially estimated it took around 10 minutes. he later clarified that Superintendent O’Reilly appeared upset initially, but became aggressive andโ angry later. He also stated the accused did not mention being falsely imprisoned.
Garda Johnson testified that Superintendent O’Reilly was โagitated when asked โขfor identification and stated,”This is all wrong,this is all lies” during โhis arrest.
The defence has presented a narrative suggesting Superintendent O’Reilly returned to the bar to leave a message for the owner – stating “Garda Gav was in” – and that the bar managerโค “went for him.” They also claim video evidence shows Superintendent O’Reilly being “dragged” by door staff and “roughed up,” suggesting ms.โค Parks was antagonistic towards him for returning.Ms. Parks previously testifiedโข that she took โa week off work andโ was very shaken following the incident, experiencing pain as a result.
Theโข trial continues before Judge John Hughes.