Mum who assaulted a woman in Dundalk given community service

A mum of three who admitted assaulting a woman after a crowd descended on the victim’s home looking for her teenage son, has been sentenced to 48 hours community service at Dundalk Circuit Court.

Judge Dara Hayes had previously heard Catherine Boland of Doolargy Avenue, Muirhevnamor, Dundalk had reacted after hearing her own son had been chased with a knife.

The 38 year old pleaded guilty to assault causing harm at College Manor, Dundalk on September 18th 2020.

The earlier sitting was told the victim was leaving the estate when she saw a group of 15 to 20 people – mostly youths, walking towards her home.

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She reversed and got out of her car, when she was confronted by the defendant who was carrying a baseball bat.

Ms. Boland handed the bat to another individual who allegedly used it to cause damage to the victim’s car.

CCTV showed the injured party appear to bend down towards her feet when the defendant, who had no previous convictions, assaulted her with her fists.

The Defence barrister said the red mist had descended after his client was told her son, who is deaf and suffers from epilepsy, had been chased by the victim’s son with a knife.

In a victim impact statement, the woman said the incident still has a negative impact on her financially, mentally, spiritually and physically and even an ordinary knock on her door makes her heart race.

The Defence handed in a number of testimonials of Ms. Boland’s involvement in her local community and stressed it was not a premeditated assault.

Judge Dara Hayes, who had put back the matter for a Probation report and for Ms. Boland’s suitability to perform community service to be assessed, was told by the Defence barrister last week that his client wished to stress that her reaction had nothing to do with race.

Judge Hayes said the defendant had no entitlement to behave in the way she did, whether or not her son had been chased. 

Noting she had no previous convictions and had not come to garda attention since, he believed an order for 48 hours community service in lieu of a 12 month sentence was appropriate.