A man who bit a garda while in the A&E department of a hospital after being arrested for a burglary has been jailed for four years.
Derek Stanley (35) feigned an illness after being arrested for breaking into a restaurant in the early hours of the morning and was brought to a hospital by gardaí.
Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard that while attempting to get off a stretcher, he bit and broke the skin of a garda's finger. He also made efforts to bite others who were restraining him, including another garda.
Stanley of St Mary's Road, East Wall, pleaded guilty to assault causing harm at Mater Hospital, Dublin City centre, and to burglary at Wasabi Bar & Grill, Dorset St Lower, Dublin City centre, both on February 27th, 2021.
He has 99 previous convictions, including convictions in the Central Criminal Court for burglary and procuring sexual intercourse under false pretences. He also has convictions for robbery, assault causing harm, theft and criminal damage.
Havoc
Passing sentence on Tuesday, Judge Pauline Codd said Stanley engaged in a “charade” about his medical condition, took up the time of busy practitioners and gardaí, and then “caused havoc”.
Judge Codd said the offending was significantly aggravated by the victim being a garda. She said the offence has to be aggravated by his choosing to feign illness and then behave in an aggressive manner in hospital.
She said it was “appalling behaviour” by anybody, behaviour that people would not expect of a child, “never mind a man who is 35 years of age”.
Judge Codd sentenced Stanley to five years imprisonment, but suspended the final 12 months of the sentence on strict conditions.
She ordered that this sentence run consecutive to the sentence he is currently serving of two-and-a-half years with the final 12 months suspended.
Garda Eoin Morrison told Dara Hayes BL, prosecuting, that in the early hours of the morning on the date in question, Stanley broke into the restaurant on Dorset Street by breaking the lock of a window to the ladies' bathroom.
This triggered the alarm and the owner contacted gardaí.
Unresponsive
Gda Morrison said he and his colleagues arrived at the scene, entering through the same window.
He said he found Stanley hiding behind the bar, who refused to show his hands and lie on the floor when directed to do so.
The garda grabbed Stanley's sleeve and tried to pull him forward, but he resisted, causing the garda's torch to fly from his hands. After a brief struggle, the garda and his colleagues got the accused man onto the ground.
Stanley shouted that he was only looking for somewhere to sleep, then shut his eyes and pretended to be unresponsive. The garda put him in the recovery position, checked for injuries and deemed his breathing to be normal.
Gardaí brought Stanley to a garda station where he was assessed by a doctor, then brought him to the Mater hospital where doctors who assessed him there found nothing wrong.
Stanley then attempted to jump up from his stretcher and said he did not know why he was there, but was then restrained by gardaí and paramedics. He bit the finger of one garda during this struggle, breaking the skin, and also attempted to bite others.
Gda Morrison said Stanley later pretended to have another medical emergency while restrained and that when he released his grip on the accused, he lunged for the garda's fingers and came very close to biting him.
The court heard that the garda who was bitten by Stanley sustained no permanent injury to his finger and missed no time off work.
Danger of an overdose
Gda Morrison agreed with Derek Cooney BL, defending, that the doctor who assessed his client in the garda station had the view it was possible he had ingested drugs and could be in danger of an overdose.
Counsel said his client instructed that he had taken drugs on the night, but said this could not be determined as a blood test was not conducted at the hospital. The garda agreed that no toxicology was done on the date of the offence.
Mr Cooney said his client had been given an opportunity to attend at a residential drug treatment centre, but he absconded, took a warrant from the courts and went on to commit these offences.
He said that as a result, any sentence must be consecutive to a sentence imposed in March 2021.
Counsel said that after absconding, his client secured employment for the first time in his life in the construction sector. He said his client is an enhanced prisoner and has two children.
