Judge says he has ‘sympathy’ for Templemore man found with knives

A judge at Thurles District Court hands a Templemore man a fine for possession of knives in “sympathy” with the defendant. 

James Peter Donoghue, 50, of New Road, Templemore was found guilty in February of two counts of possession of knives and possession of cannabis on May 16, 2023, at Manna South, Templemore and Thurles Garda Station.

Mr Donogue had pleaded guilty to the drug possession but contested the weapons charges.

Through his solicitor Paddy Cadell, Mr Donoghue claimed he had taken one knife out of his caravan to prevent his children from harming themselves or each other. 

The second had fallen through a hole in his pocket, and he wasn’t aware he had it on his person. 

Mr Donogue was not in court on the day of his hearing, and a bench warrant was issued by Judge Elizabeth MacGrath. 

This week, at his sentencing, Judge William Aylmer said he had some “sympathy” for the defendant. 

The judge said that as a young man, he had been travelling through Dublin Airport when security detected a sailing knife in his rucksack, Judge Aylmer was not aware he had. 

“You can imagine my embarrassment,” said Judge Aylmer. 

He gave Mr Donoghue a €150 fine for one count of possession of a knife with three months to pay and took the other two charges into consideration. 

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Sgt Tom Hanrahan told the court that on the day of the incident, gardai had stopped the vehicle Mr Donoghue was driving. 

The arresting guard James Kelleher saw a knife under the driver's seat and seized it.  The defendant was arrested, and when searched, the guard found a small amount of cannabis and a second knife in the lining of Mr Donoghue’s jacket.

The defendant had told gardai the drugs were for personal use, but the first knife was taken from his children. Sgt Hanrahan said the defendant had 26 previous convictions, including for public order, theft and assault. 

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Mr Cadell told the court that his client had acted in the safety of his children, but as he was not in court on the day of the hearing, could not contest the facts himself.

He said the first knife was a kitchen knife, and the second had fallen through a hole in his pocket, and he wasn’t aware it was there. 

Mr Cadell acknowledged that it was his client's fault he wasn’t in court but said, in that case, the court had no choice but to find him guilty.

He also told the court that his client was “in poor health for a 50-year-old,” suffering from kidney problems.