Man (42) spared trial for threatening to slit throat of TD Paul Murphy's wife

Tom Tuite

A man who threatened Paul Murphy TD with slitting his wife's throat has been spared trial and jail after apologising and citing a psychotic episode.

Dublin District Court had sought fitness-to-plead psychiatric reports on the accused, and on Thursday, 42-year-old Joseph Cloherty's non-jury hearing was expected to go ahead.

Mr Cloherty, of no fixed address, had earlier indicated that he would contest the charge, requiring Murphy to come to court and testify.

However, Judge John Hughes heard that the prosecution was not proceeding and applying to withdraw the case.

Judge Hughes noted that this followed a letter being sent by Cloherty to the Dublin South-West TD, apologising to both him and his wife, councillor Jessica Spear, and explaining the incident happened when he was going through a psychotic episode.

The apology was acceptable to the TD, who was not required to give evidence and left the court as Judge Hughes struck out the proceedings.

Defence solicitor Emer O'Sullivan also furnished a medical report on her client, who pleaded guilty to unrelated public order offences, resulting in a one-month suspended sentence.

Cloherty had nine prior convictions, mainly public order and motoring offences.

The threatening encounter with the politician occurred after the politician canvassed about abortion laws in Tallaght on May 23rd, 2023.

Cloherty faced a charge under section 5 of the Non-Fatal Offences Against the Person Act.

Mr Cloherty was accused of having, without a lawful excuse, made a threat to Paul Murphy, intending him to believe it would be carried out that he would kill or cause serious harm to Jessica Spear.

Earlier, the court heard that Mr Cloherty had been hospitalised involuntarily.

A preliminary hearing in January was told that he denied the charge that he threatened the politician to his face that his wife would be seriously harmed.

Ms Spear is a People Before Profit councillor for Tallaght Central.

The Director of Public Prosecutions directed summary disposal of the case at the District Court level.

Outlining the evidence, Garda Elaine Markham had said that the TD had set up a stall at Belgard Square.

He was giving out leaflets about a pro-abortion bill when the accused allegedly "walked up to Paul Murphy and threatened to slit his wife's throat".

Gardaí took statements from her and the TD.

"That's a lie," Mr Cloherty had told the court after it heard a summary of the evidence.

Mr Cloherty had said, "They were talking about killing babies."

On conviction, the threat could have led to a fine and a 12-month sentence.

On Thursday, Garda Sergeant Nigel Petrie gave evidence on the two remaining unconnected offences, the use of threatening, abusive, insulting behaviour in public and resisting arrest on January 9th.

Sergeant Petrie said he spoke to Cloherty near the Royal Canal Bank in Dublin and was about to arrest him over a warrant.

Cloherty angrily shouted, "You have now entered the arena; you don't know what you've just done".

He resisted gardaí handcuffing or putting him into a patrol car, but the sergeant volunteered that it ranked at two or three out of ten in terms of seriousness.

He stressed that Cloherty subsequently sought him out to apologise, adding that he is now a very different man from the agitated person he met on the date of the arrest.

Ms O'Sullivan, pleading for leniency, said Cloherty was in homeless accommodation but goes to his mother's house every day. She and Cloherty's brother-in-law came to court, and the solicitor emphasised that he had family support and was now on antipsychotic medication.

Noting his apology, medical report and mitigation plea, Judge Hughes suspended the one-month term on condition he does not re-offend for two years, stays off cocaine and cannabis, and continues to attend appointments with a mental health professional and follow their directions.