A Leaving Cert student who tried to sell cocaine to an undercover Garda had turned his life around in the three intervening years before his case came to court, so deserved a chance and had his case struck out when it came before Galway District Court.
Judge Fiona Brennan heard that the defendant approached the undercover Garda at Nuns Island at 12.30am on February 17, 2023 and asked him if he was there to buy drugs from him. When he was searched three cocaine deals worth €210 were found on him. He admitted selling drugs for two weeks before he was caught.
Judge Brennan asked why it took so long, three years, to bring the case before the court. Garda Sgt Christy Brown told her he understood the delays came down to the analysing process.
Michael Cunningham solicitor (defending ) said his client had been 18 at the time of his arrest but was now 21 and had done a lot of growing up since then. His father was in court to support him and had only found out about the prosecution recently.
The defence pleaded that in this three-year period he had not come to Garda attention again and had fully co-operated with Gardaí.
He had completed his Leaving Cert, studied at third-level and set up his own web design business in the intervening period and hoped to travel to Holland for further studies.
In addition he had taken a drug awareness course and had a clean hair follicle test to present to the court to prove he was finished with illegal drugs.
“He was a naive and very foolish young man at 18 but has distanced himself from the peers he was hanging around with back then and now has a very bright future ahead of him,” Mr Cunningham stated, pleading for leniency and for his client to be given a chance on this his first offence.
Judge Brennan noted what she described as an inordinate delay in bring the case before the court and said that she was satisfied that the defendant had clearly taken steps to better himself, so in this case she thought it was appropriate to strike out the charge.
