Tree surgeon from Cork granted gun license to deal with problem of 'rabbits and other vermin'

A tree surgeon who was keen to get a gun licence to deal with an enormous problem with rabbits on his land was successful yesterday in his appeal for the firearms certificate.

Judge Joanne Carroll granted the licence to Rory McCarthy, who is aged around 30 and from Realog, Monastery Road, Rochestown, County Cork, and asked for his sworn evidence that he had not used any drugs other than alcohol in the past two years.

Mr McCarthy said that he had not used any such drug since 2020. His solicitor, Killian McCarthy, said one of the grounds for the initial refusal of the licence was a conviction from 2019 for drug-driving, where he was driving while there was cannabis in his system. 

The solicitor said Judge John King who heard the appeal in May indicated that if the applicant did an immediate drug test and a second one at a random time chosen by gardaí and if both were clear of drugs then the firearm certificate would be granted.

There was evidence of those clear certs before Cork District Court yesterday and Judge Joanne Carroll required him to give sworn evidence of not having used drugs for the past two years.

The reason for the initial refusal was in the interests of public safety, on the basis that the applicant had a 2019 conviction for a drug driving incident in 2018.

Killian McCarthy said Mr McCarthy no longer used cannabis and had undertaken rifle training in the hope of getting a firearm for “vermin control”.

The solicitor added, “He has an enormous problem with rabbits and other vermin.” 

Evidence during appeal

Rory McCarthy gave evidence in his appeal against the cert refusal: “I am trying to get a market garden started at home. I have plants but rabbits are eating them. 

"I have lost chickens to a fox. There are always foxes around. I want to get the show on the road with the garden.”

He said he had been hoping to get a 17 calibre Tikka rifle, designed for shooting vermin.

Referring to his drug driving conviction, he said, “At the time I was using marijuana regularly. I stopped using it in 2020 and I haven’t gone back on it since.” 

He added that he understood where the superintendent who refused the application initially, was coming from in relation to the cert refusal. Mr McCarthy accepted that it is a mind-altering drug but stressed again that he was no longer using it.