A detective garda whose nose and jaw were broken in a "frightening assault" by two deaf mutes who tried to take his gun was yesterday awarded £116,347 compensation by the High Court.
A passer-by tried to assist the garda by hitting one of the men with a wooden toilet seat. But it broke and the intervention seemed to have no effect, the court heard.
The compensation award to Det Garda David Byrne (43), of Mountainview Drive, Bray, Co Wicklow, includes £60,000 for post-traumatic stress disorder.
Mr Joseph Finnegan SC, for Det Garda Byrne, said his client was driving an unmarked patrol car on June 19th, 1992 at Killarney Road, Bray, when he came across what appeared to be a traffic accident. A Traveller woman had been knocked down and her husband and his brother had set upon the owner of a scooter.
Det Garda Byrne put that man in the patrol car for his own safety. Mr Finnegan said the two men with the Traveller woman carried out a frightening assault on Det Garda Byrne. In evidence, Det Garda Byrne said the two were members of a family who had regularly carried out assaults. The men could not be charged because they were deaf and dumb.
He said one of the men had held the motor scooter over his head and slammed it onto the roadway. Det Garda Byrne said he had put the scooter owner in the patrol car for his own safety.
One of the two deaf and dumb men had put his fist through the windscreen and had punched and broken Det Garda Byrne's nose and jaw.
The garda also suffered damage to his kidneys and bruising to his arms, chest and back. Three of his teeth were loosened and he had swelling over his right eye.
One of the two men went across the road towards a house. Det Garda Byrne said he heard somebody say the man had gone to get a sawn-off shotgun.
A Garda car arrived and the two men left the area.
Det Garda Byrne said a passerby, who was carrying a wooden toilet seat, had tried to assist.
The passer-by hit one of the deaf mutes with the seat, which broke, but it seemed to have no effect.
Giving judgment, Mr Justice Budd said Det Garda Byrne had not been sure which of the two men was attacking him, because his face was bloodied and he had blood in his eyes. Attempts were made to get his firearm.
The garda was put in fear of his life because he became aware that one of the two brothers had gone for a shotgun.
A Garda patrol car arrived and brought Det Garda Byrne to St Columcille's Hospital, Loughlinstown, Co Dublin.
Mr Justice Budd said the physical injuries had been accompanied by post-traumatic stress disorder.
The judge said that gardai were expected to experience stress and stressful situations and they would be worried, anxious and upset by life-threatening or violent episodes. Where the normal type of reactive stress continued and became post-traumatic stress disorder, then it fell into a different category and there was no doubt that this episode had had a very serious effect on Det Garda Byrne.