Kilkenny man who tried to run from gardaí gets prison sentence

A Kilkenny man who tried to run from gardaí to avoid being searched has been convicted of a drugs offence at the local district court.

Paul Delaney, 149 Roberts Hill, Kilkenny, pleaded guilty to a charge of being in illegal possession of drugs on April 3, 2024, at Kilkenny Garda Station.

Inspector Alma Molloy told the court that gardaí on patrol observed Mr Delaney on Lower New Street. A garda rolled down the car window to talk to him and Mr Delaney appeared nervous.

When asked why he was nervous Mr Delaney told gardaí he had just won a bet and was collecting his winnings.

Gardaí told him he would be searched and Mr Delaney tried to flee from them. However he was arrested and taken to Kilkenny Garda Station.

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In the patrol car, on the way to the station, Mr Delaney said he ran because he had a number of wraps of a drug in his possession and he had been in trouble with the gardaí before.

The substance was tested and confirmed to be illegal drugs.
There were 58 previous convictions recorded against Mr Delaney.

Solicitor Ed Hughes said he had been representing Mr Delaney for 12 years and said he knew he was a “nuisance” to gardaí but had been coming before the court on more serious offences in the past.

‘Falls off wagon’
The solicitor said it was his experience, watching from the ‘outside’, that Mr Delaney goes through stages of “impeccable behaviour” when he is off all substances and when he ‘falls off the wagon’ he comes before the court, but on more minor offences than he used to.

Mr Delaney did run from the gardaí on this occasion but when they caught up with him he did make admissions, the solicitor added.

His client might have run because he knew he had bought a poor quality substance and didn’t want to get in trouble with the gardaí.

Like any drug addict, Mr Delaney goes through peaks and troughs, Mr Hughes said. When he lives with his mother he doesn’t get into trouble but when he is living in homeless accommodation he falls in with a negative peer group.

Mr Hughes handed in a letter to show Mr Delaney is engaging with support services and is “going through one of his good phases.”

At the time of this offence his client wasn’t on methadone but he now is.

Mr Hughes asked the court to ‘stay its hand’ on any custodial sentence saying his client wants to go into treatment.
“A carrot and stick approach might keep him on the straight and narrow,” the solicitor suggested.

Judge Geraldine Carthy said the case, unfortunately, made stark reading.
The court had afforded Mr Delaney many chances in the past, the ‘carrot and stick’ had been used many times, she said, and it hasn’t had any effect. She convicted Mr Delaney on the drug possession charge and imposed a six-month custodial sentence.
Recognisance was fixed in the event of an appeal.