Eight month suspended prison sentence for pepper spray attack in Carrick-on-Shannon

A young Longford man received an eight month suspended sentence and community service for an assault on two men in a random attack in Carrick-on-Shannon in 2019.

Anthony Barrett, 83 Ardnacassa Avenue, Longford was charged with an assault on Shane Jessup at Glancy's Car Park, Cortober, Carrick-on-Shannon on October 12, 2019 and an assault on David Nolan in the same location. He received four months, suspended for 12 months, on each assault.
Mr Barrett also received 120 hours of community service in lieu of four months in prison for possession of a pepper spray can.
At a previous court, it was outlined that two men arrived in Carrick-on- Shannon at 6pm and were reversing their van at Glancy’s Car Park when it struck the wall causing minor damage to a tail light.

The defendant spoke to them and asked them if they had been drinking because they had hit the wall. The defendant told them he was a garda.
One of the men got out of the van and Anthony Barrett sprayed him in the face with pepper spray.
The other man sitting in the van was also struck with pepper spray.
The victims got back into the van and drove off while the defendant got into his car and also drove off.
The court heard that Mr Barrett had been in Carrick-on-Shannon shopping with his wife and newborn baby and his sister-in-law. He said he had no connection to the two men. Solicitor Gerard Keane represented him.

The defendant told the court one of the men had got out of the van with a can of beer and started going to the toilet beside the van. He said he asked him to cover himself up as there were women present.
The defendant said the pepper spray belonged to his wife and he said one of the men went to pull something from his pocket and he “lost the head” and sprayed him. He described it as “a moment of madness.”
The court heard he has seven previous convictions, including one for affray in 2017 at Eyre Square, Galway, when he was bound to the peace for 12 months.

The incident had been captured on CCTV.
Judge Murphy delivered her decision at Carrick District Court on September 27.