The father of garda murderer Aaron Brady has been given permission to attend a Special Criminal Court sentencing hearing for one of the members of the gang that carried out the Lordship Credit Union Robbery, despite the Director of Public Prosecutions making an application for him to be excluded.
Mr Justice Tony Hunt said the court would decline to impose an exclusion order on Monday, after noting that such a measure would not stop Tony Brady "propagating his nonsense".
Tony Brady had previously been excluded during the trial of James Flynn, who was convicted by the non-jury, three-judge court of conspiracy to steal a car that was later used in the robbery of Lordship Credit Union during which Aaron Brady shot and murdered Det Gda Adrian Donohoe.
Mr Justice Tony Hunt said Mr Brady had published a "tendentious and offensive" online video accusing a garda of committing perjury and contempt of court. On Monday Mr Brady took his place in the public gallery along with members of James Flynn's family for a brief sentencing hearing.
Before proceedings began, Brendan Grehan SC, for the State, reminded the court of the previous order to exclude Mr Brady and applied for that exclusion to continue. He said he was making the application because new material had been published online "as recently as last night in respect of this court's proceedings in this trial and its judgment".
He said the most recent video "seems inconsistent with any suggestion that Mr Brady has learned anything from the previous application". Counsel explained that Mr Brady has moved on from speaking about witnesses to "matters being said about the court".
Mr Justice Hunt said such things don't cause him to lose sleep and he doesn't "go looking for that kind of nonsense".
if they are criticising you, you are probably doing something right
He said "those people will always be with us in one guise or another... if they are criticising you, you are probably doing something right."
Having consulted with his colleagues, Mr Justice Hunt allowed Mr Brady to remain in court.
"An exclusion order won't stop him propagating his nonsense, because that's what it is," the judge said. He told Mr Grehan to send material to the court registrar if any further matter arises that should be brought to the court's attention.
In September, the Special Criminal Court acquitted James Flynn (32) from South Armagh of participation in the robbery of €7,000 at Lordship Credit Union in Bellurgan, Co Louth, on January 25th, 2013. It was during that robbery that Aaron Brady murdered Det Gda Adrian Donohoe. Brady is serving a life sentence with a minimum of 40 years for the offence and is awaiting the outcome of an appeal against his conviction.
The court found that Flynn was an active member of the gang that carried out the robbery and that he was intimately involved with Brady and another man in stealing a Volkswagen Passat that was used as a getaway car.
The court also found that Flynn drove his own BMW to a remote location in south Armagh where the Passat was set on fire and then Flynn drove the participants from the area.
Mr Justice Hunt said Flynn was therefore an accessory before and after the robbery. However, the court was not satisfied that the State had proven its case that Flynn was a direct participant in the robbery and therefore acquitted him of that charge.
The court did convict Flynn of conspiracy to steal the Volkswagen Passat from outside a house in Clogherhead, Co Louth on January 22/23rd, 2013.
At Monday's sentencing hearing Lorcan Staines SC, for the State, argued that the court should take into consideration the fact that Flynn was an active member of a criminal organisation and that the stolen Volkswagen Passat was used in the Lordship robbery.
He said that if the court considers the offence in the mid-range for seriousness, it would attract a sentence of four to nine years and if in the most serious category it would attract a sentence of between nine and 14 years. Inspector Mark Phillips told the court that Flynn has two previous convictions at District Court level from 2011 for public order offences.
Bernard Condon SC, for Flynn, said the court should not impose a heightened sentence by taking into consideration the Lordship robbery, for which his client was acquitted. In sentencing, Mr Condon submitted that the court is limited to considering the charge of conspiracy to burgle the car at Clogherhead and nothing more.
Counsel suggested that Flynn's offence falls into the lower end of the middle category. In mitigation, Mr Condon said his client has no relevant previous convictions and is now a 32-year-old man facing a sentence for something he did aged 22. His circumstances have "changed completely," Mr Condon said, as Flynn is now a married man with two children, one of whom was born while Flynn was in custody in relation to this offence.
Mr Condon said Flynn has an "immensely impressive commitment" to his working life, having left school aged 16 to set up a business in the US. He later set up a car business in Northern Ireland that went to the wall due to Covid and then went to London to start another business. He is the "sole breadwinner" for his family and is committed to his children, counsel said.
Mr Condon handed in a booklet of testimonials from Flynn's wife, mother-in-law and an SDLP councillor from Northern Ireland, among others. Counsel said that Flynn has used his time in custody productively, having enrolled in courses to help with his business when he is released. Flynn is an enhanced prisoner in Mountjoy, Mr Condon said.
The court adjourned the matter to December 21st for sentencing.
