A SHELL to Sea protester charged with obstruction, which resulted in a garda falling into a deep drain, had his charges dismissed after a District Court judge said the evidence caused “total confusion”.
Edward Collins, Ballina, Co Mayo, appeared before yesterday’s sitting of Belmullet District Court in relation to the offence which occurred during a Shell to Sea National Day of Protest in Bellanaboy on November 10th, 2006.
At two previous sittings, the court heard that during the protest, both Garda Orla Nelson and Mr Collins fell into a 243cm (8ft) drain full of water and mud. Judge Mary Devins said she had read and reread the evidence and privately visited the location of the incident.
The judge said confusion was the only word that applied to the case. She said that because of this confusion she had to dismiss the charges.
“I have read the notes of the case carefully and no two witnesses belonging to either the prosecution or the defence are consistent with one another. Nowhere is the oral evidence consistent with the video evidence. . . it is total confusion,” she said.
The evidence in the case was first heard in February when Garda Nelson of Castleblayney Garda station told the court that during the protest in Bellanaboy, when she asked Mr Collins to move back off the road, he refused.
Garda Nelson said they both had a hold of each other and she fell face first into the ditch.
However, Mr Collins accused Garda Nelson of kicking him in the groin and said he was thrown into the drain by a different garda.
He denied being aggressive to Garda Nelson and claimed he was walking away from the protest.