A detective garda told the Barr tribunal yesterday that he had not fired his rifle at Abbeylara as it had a high-velocity bullet which he was concerned would travel through John Carthy and hit one of his colleagues.
Det Garda William Sisk, then with the Emergency Response Unit (ERU), said that at around 5.45 pm on April 20th, 2000, Mr Carthy left the house after the 26-hour siege carrying his shotgun and was on the roadway.
He was behind Mr Carthy. He had lifted his rifle and aimed for Mr Carthy's upper torso.
He said then Det Inspector Michael Jackson shot at Mr Carthy but he did not fire.
"The weapon that I was carrying fired a very high-velocity bullet and I would have been concerned that, if I'd have fired at John Carthy from that position, that the bullet would have travelled through John Carthy and indeed have hit somebody else at the command post."
He moved to the left, intending that if he fired a bullet it would go towards the ditch or the field. The range was 400 metres.
The chairman, Mr Justice Barr, noted that Garda Sisk had a rifle and a revolver. The rifle was a long-range weapon, but Mr Carthy was a few yards away. Why did he select that weapon and not the revolver?
Garda Sisk said he had his handgun in a holster at his hip.
"I believed at the time that my life was in danger as a result of the way John Carthy was holding his gun, he could have turned on me with the gun, so I thought that the first weapon I had at hand was the most beneficial weapon to me to protect myself against that happening," he said.
He said if he had changed the weapon, Mr Carthy could have turned on him as he was drawing his pistol and fired on him. He used the rifle primarily as a weapon of self-defence.
Garda Sisk said after the first three shots, Mr Carthy kept walking a few paces although he had been hit and did not change his demeanour. It was only when the fourth shot was fired that Mr Carthy dropped his weapon and fell on the ground.
He said when Mr Carthy started walking along the road, he believed his gun was tracking the uniformed garda further along with his gun. When they moved to the left to take cover, his gun followed them.
"They were running for their lives basically," he said. "I believed everybody in front of John Carthy was in danger."
The tribunal is inquiring into the fatal shooting of Mr Carthy. It continues today.