{"id":443179,"date":"2026-05-11T12:04:12","date_gmt":"2026-05-11T12:04:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/443179\/"},"modified":"2026-05-11T12:04:12","modified_gmt":"2026-05-11T12:04:12","slug":"judge-tells-wicklow-man-going-around-with-baseball-bats-and-knives-is-just-not-on","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/443179\/","title":{"rendered":"Judge tells Wicklow man \u2018going around with baseball bats and knives is just not on\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"indo-ebe0ecc6_root indo-ebe0ecc6_paragraph indo-300db776_none indo-91174671_primary indo-1d70522a_marginbottom5 indo-1d70522a_margintop0 indo-b48c4984_inherit\" style=\"color:var(--color-primary-80)\">Alan Walsh (35), of Seaview Heights, Rathnew, Co Wicklow, appeared at Wicklow Circuit Criminal Court for sentencing after pleading guilty to threatening to kill, producing an article to cause harm and possession of drugs for sale or supply.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indo-ebe0ecc6_root indo-ebe0ecc6_paragraph indo-300db776_none indo-91174671_primary indo-1d70522a_marginbottom5 indo-1d70522a_margintop0 indo-b48c4984_inherit\" style=\"color:var(--color-primary-80)\">Detective Garda Liam Flynn gave evidence that on November 11, 2024, garda\u00ed received a report that a man had threatened two people.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indo-ebe0ecc6_root indo-ebe0ecc6_paragraph indo-300db776_none indo-91174671_primary indo-1d70522a_marginbottom5 indo-1d70522a_margintop0 indo-b48c4984_inherit\" style=\"color:var(--color-primary-80)\">Garda\u00ed attended the scene where they met the complainant and his friend, who said the accused came out of his home swinging a baseball bat while they were removing a car using a tow truck, before returning armed with two knives.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indo-ebe0ecc6_root indo-ebe0ecc6_paragraph indo-300db776_none indo-91174671_primary indo-1d70522a_marginbottom5 indo-1d70522a_margintop0 indo-b48c4984_inherit\" style=\"color:var(--color-primary-80)\">Counsel for the prosecution, James Kelly, told the court that Mr Walsh was highly intoxicated and became annoyed by the noise of the truck.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indo-ebe0ecc6_root indo-ebe0ecc6_paragraph indo-300db776_none indo-91174671_primary indo-1d70522a_marginbottom5 indo-1d70522a_margintop0 indo-b48c4984_inherit\" style=\"color:var(--color-primary-80)\">Two knives were later seized in the garden of the defendant. Mr Kelly described them as being of the \u201ckitchen variety\u201d.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indo-ebe0ecc6_root indo-ebe0ecc6_paragraph indo-300db776_none indo-91174671_primary indo-1d70522a_marginbottom5 indo-1d70522a_margintop0 indo-b48c4984_inherit\" style=\"color:var(--color-primary-80)\">The court also heard that on June 19, 2024, at South Quay in Wicklow town, Mr Walsh was found in an intoxicated state and, when approached by garda\u00ed, was found in possession of 13 grams of a yellow powdered substance.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indo-ebe0ecc6_root indo-ebe0ecc6_paragraph indo-300db776_none indo-91174671_primary indo-1d70522a_marginbottom5 indo-1d70522a_margintop0 indo-b48c4984_inherit\" style=\"color:var(--color-primary-80)\">Mr Walsh has 11 previous convictions, including offences relating to firearms and criminal damage, and was previously sentenced in 2020 at Wexford Circuit Court, following a serious and sustained assault on his then partner.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indo-ebe0ecc6_root indo-ebe0ecc6_paragraph indo-300db776_none indo-91174671_primary indo-1d70522a_marginbottom5 indo-1d70522a_margintop0 indo-b48c4984_inherit\" style=\"color:var(--color-primary-80)\">The court heard back in 2020, that Mr Walsh subjected the injured party to a prolonged and violent ordeal over a number of hours, during which she was dragged around their home, repeatedly punched and had her head struck off a wall multiple times.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indo-ebe0ecc6_root indo-ebe0ecc6_paragraph indo-300db776_none indo-91174671_primary indo-1d70522a_marginbottom5 indo-1d70522a_margintop0 indo-b48c4984_inherit\" style=\"color:var(--color-primary-80)\">She was threatened that she would not leave the apartment alive and, at one stage, considered jumping from a window to escape.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Alan Walsh (35), of Seaview Heights, Rathnew, Co Wicklow\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/47dba37d-3c8d-48c1-bb14-75ccf9c2cddd.jpg\" loading=\"eager\" width=\"100%\" data-testid=\"article-image\"  \/><\/p>\n<p class=\"indo-ebe0ecc6_root indo-ebe0ecc6_caption1 indo-300db776_none indo-91174671_secondary indo-66f0fec7_regular indo-1d70522a_marginbottom0 indo-1d70522a_marginleft0 indo-1d70522a_marginright0 indo-1d70522a_margintop3 indo-b48c4984_left\" style=\"color:var(--color-grey-60)\">Alan Walsh (35), of Seaview Heights, Rathnew, Co Wicklow<\/p>\n<p class=\"indo-ebe0ecc6_root indo-ebe0ecc6_caption1 indo-300db776_none indo-91174671_secondary indo-66f0fec7_regular indo-1d70522a_marginbottom0 indo-1d70522a_marginleft0 indo-1d70522a_marginright0 indo-1d70522a_margintop3 indo-b48c4984_left\" style=\"color:var(--color-grey-60)\">News in 90 Seconds &#8211; May 11th 2026<\/p>\n<p class=\"indo-ebe0ecc6_root indo-ebe0ecc6_paragraph indo-300db776_none indo-91174671_primary indo-1d70522a_marginbottom5 indo-1d70522a_margintop0 indo-b48c4984_inherit\" style=\"color:var(--color-primary-80)\">During the attack, Mr Walsh used a broken bottle to slash her face, causing a deep laceration that resulted in permanent scarring. He also pressed a wet towel against her face, depriving her of air.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indo-ebe0ecc6_root indo-ebe0ecc6_paragraph indo-300db776_none indo-91174671_primary indo-1d70522a_marginbottom5 indo-1d70522a_margintop0 indo-b48c4984_inherit\" style=\"color:var(--color-primary-80)\">The injured party was left with both physical and psychological injuries, including lasting anxiety and the need for ongoing counselling.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indo-ebe0ecc6_root indo-ebe0ecc6_paragraph indo-300db776_none indo-91174671_primary indo-1d70522a_marginbottom5 indo-1d70522a_margintop0 indo-b48c4984_inherit\" style=\"color:var(--color-primary-80)\">During cross-examination, counsel for the accused, Edmund Sweetman, said his client had previously jumped from a window of the Parkview Hotel, suffering a broken leg and back injuries.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indo-ebe0ecc6_root indo-ebe0ecc6_paragraph indo-300db776_none indo-91174671_primary indo-1d70522a_marginbottom5 indo-1d70522a_margintop0 indo-b48c4984_inherit\" style=\"color:var(--color-primary-80)\">Mr Sweetman said Mr Walsh has not come to garda attention since his last conviction and is willing to provide \u20ac1,000 in compensation.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indo-ebe0ecc6_root indo-ebe0ecc6_paragraph indo-300db776_none indo-91174671_primary indo-1d70522a_marginbottom5 indo-1d70522a_margintop0 indo-b48c4984_inherit\" style=\"color:var(--color-primary-80)\">He added that, while the probation report before the court was negative, a letter from Merchants Quay Ireland presented a very different picture of the accused.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indo-ebe0ecc6_root indo-ebe0ecc6_paragraph indo-300db776_none indo-91174671_primary indo-1d70522a_marginbottom5 indo-1d70522a_margintop0 indo-b48c4984_inherit\" style=\"color:var(--color-primary-80)\">The court was told Mr Walsh has a 17-year-old son and, when asked how he would feel if his son behaved in such a way, he said he would be \u201cshocked and horrified\u201d. Mr Sweetman said his client has been sober for six months.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indo-ebe0ecc6_root indo-ebe0ecc6_paragraph indo-300db776_none indo-91174671_primary indo-1d70522a_marginbottom5 indo-1d70522a_margintop0 indo-b48c4984_inherit\" style=\"color:var(--color-primary-80)\">In her judgment, Judge Sin\u00e9ad N\u00ed Ch\u00falach\u00e1in said the letter from Merchants Quay Ireland and the probation report were \u201cpolar opposites\u201d.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indo-ebe0ecc6_root indo-ebe0ecc6_paragraph indo-300db776_none indo-91174671_primary indo-1d70522a_marginbottom5 indo-1d70522a_margintop0 indo-b48c4984_inherit\" style=\"color:var(--color-primary-80)\">She told Mr Walsh that the Probation Service is there to support offenders and is \u201cnot the enemy\u201d, and that he must \u201cput his head down, engage and make a positive change\u201d.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indo-ebe0ecc6_root indo-ebe0ecc6_paragraph indo-300db776_none indo-91174671_primary indo-1d70522a_marginbottom5 indo-1d70522a_margintop0 indo-b48c4984_inherit\" style=\"color:var(--color-primary-80)\">The judge added that \u201cgoing around with baseball bats and knives is just not on\u201d. Judge N\u00ed Ch\u00falach\u00e1in adjourned the matter to allow Mr Walsh further time to engage with the Probation Service and relevant supports.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indo-ebe0ecc6_root indo-ebe0ecc6_paragraph indo-300db776_none indo-91174671_primary indo-1d70522a_marginbottom5 indo-1d70522a_margintop0 indo-b48c4984_inherit\" style=\"color:var(--color-primary-80)\">Funded by the Court Reporting Scheme<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Alan Walsh (35), of Seaview Heights, Rathnew, Co Wicklow, appeared at Wicklow Circuit Criminal Court for sentencing after&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":443180,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[13228,61,60,43],"class_list":["post-443179","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-ireland","tag-darragh-mccann","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/443179","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=443179"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/443179\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/443180"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=443179"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=443179"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=443179"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}