Three months in custody for Athy man who called garda 'baldy b******' at checkpoint

A man who became irate because his car was being seized by the gardaí was prosecuted at Naas District Court.

John Gallagher, 27, whose address was given as 6 Ardrew Meadows, Athy, was before the court for a breach of the Public Order Act on May 17 2019 at Woodstock Street, Athy.

Sgt Brian Jacob said the defendant became agitated when he was stopped at a checkp0int.

He because abusive and he referred to a garda as a “baldy b……”.

It was also claimed he said “wait till I get you around the corner on your own”.

Solicitor Tim Kennelly said while the insurance disc was missing, the vehicle was insured by the defendant.

“He felt he was being picked on but that wasn’t the way to deal with it,” said Mr Kennelly.

The court heard that the defendant has 12 previous convictions, including one for failing to comply with a direction of a garda and under the Public Order Act.

Judge Desmond Zaidan imposed a three months term in custody.

The term will run concurrently with a term he is serving and means that there will be no overall increase in the custody term.