A man who threatened Gardai with a chainsaw when they called to his house during a disturbance has avoided going to jail.
Matthew Smyth, 27, mounted a -siege-like situation at his family home in Culdaff, Co Donegal during an early morning domestic dispute at 7.12am on April 16th, 2021.
Gardai were called.but when they arrived he waved a chainsaw at them as they tried to gain entry to the property at Dunross.
The accused also produced a broken fence post which he threatened Gardai with during the stand-off.
Garda Sergeant Jim Collins said that Smyth was spoken to by Gardai and eventually put the chainsaw down.
Smyth was arrested and later detained under Section 12 of the Mental Health Act and received treatment and assistance.
He is charged with assaulting Christopher Smyth on April 16th, 2021 contrary to Section 2 of the Non-Fatal Offences Against the Persons Act, 1997.
He is also charged that he did appear to be about to commit an offence, to wit an article capable of inflicting serious injury, to wit a chainsaw with motor and blades running, this offence contrary to Section 11 of the Firearms and Offensive Weapons Act of 1990.
A charge of assaulting his father and threatening him with a broken pint glass was withdrawn by Gardai.
On the same date is charged that he did appear to be about to commit an offence, to wit, assault in the course of a dispute did produce in a manner likely unlawfully to intimidate another person an article capable of inflicting serious injury , to wit, a fencing post.
The court was told that the accused has no previous convictions of any kind.
Solicitor for the accused, Mr Frank Dorrian said the threat against his father has been withdrawn and that harmony has been restored in the home.
He said the threat was more bluster than threat but that Gardai were not to know this.
He added that given Smyth’s frame of mind he had adopted an entrenched position whereby he felt himself under some sort of threat and that he was besieged.
However, he added there had been good engagement by Smyth and that he is now well-motivated and much more communicative.
Judge Eiteain Cunningham said she had read two probation reports on the accused and noted that there had been food engagement.
Nonetheless, she said this was a serious matter that had involved a broken glass and a running chainsaw.
She convicted the accused under the Firearms Act and sentenced him to 80 hours community service in lieu of three months in prison and took all other charges into consideration.