Man who assaulted his landlord after being asked to leave property is jailed

Eimar Dodd

A man who assaulted his landlord after being asked to leave the property has been jailed for 12 months.

Philip Lalor (36) also assaulted another tenant before brandishing a knife in the direction of the landlord.

Lalor climbed out of a window after armed gardaí were called to the house, but was apprehended in a laneway.

Lalor, formerly of Celtic Park Avenue, Beaumont, Dublin 9, was convicted of two counts of assault causing harm and one of production of a Stanley knife in the course of a dispute following a trial at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court in March.

He was also convicted of two counts of threatening and abusive behaviour, one of which took place in Clondalkin Garda Station.

Garda Leanne Connell told Patrick McCullough, prosecuting, on Tuesday, that Lalor was renting a room in a shared house in Whitehall.

The landlord and his wife went to the house to ask Lalor to leave on June 20th, 2020.

At one point, Lalor said he wouldn’t leave, but it was agreed that the full amount of rent he’d paid and a deposit of around €1,000 would be returned to him.

After this was done, Lalor again said he wasn’t leaving as there was washing in the machine. The landlord agreed to help him take the laundry out and bring it to a nearby laundromat.

Lalor went upstairs and after some time, the landlord went up to his bedroom. Lalor was on the bed, and again said he wouldn’t leave.

The landlord picked up a bag near the door, then walked into the hall with it.

Lalor grabbed him from behind and put him in a chokehold. The landlord fell to the floor.

His wife and other tenants heard the commotion and came upstairs. His wife said she saw her husband on the floor in a chokehold, his face turning blue.

Another tenant came out of his room and tried to help the landlord. He grabbed Lalor in a chokehold, and while holding him, Lalor pushed him against the door frame and wall. This man sustained bruising afterwards.

Lalor released the landlord and went into his room. He came out holding a Stanley knife and brandished it at the landlord who was standing in close proximity to him.

Gardaí were called, and the others present went downstairs.

When members of the Armed Support Unit arrived at the house, Lalor was still inside. They went into the house, knocked on his bedroom door and asked him to come out.

He escaped out of an upstairs window and was caught attempting to flee down a nearby lane. He had a black holdall bag with him, which contained a Stanley knife, the court was told.

Lalor resisted gardaí, acting in an aggressive and threatening manner. He was taken to Clondalkin Garda Station, where he continued to behave aggressively.

He threatened to headbutt gardaí and had to be taken to a cell for his own safety.

The court was told he displayed further aggression while in the cell and was deemed unfit for interview for six hours due to his level of intoxication.

When interviewed, Lalor did not deny being in the house but downplayed what had happened. He said the landlord came into his room and took the bags, which had tools in it.

He denied the assault or using a chokehold, saying he may have grabbed the landlord around his waist or shoulders.

Lalor said the knife fell from the bag when it was grabbed and that he picked it up, denying that he brandished it.

He said he left through a window as he couldn’t trust the people at the door were gardaí and not friends of the landlord.

Lalor has 20 previous convictions, including 12 for public order and three for criminal damage.

A victim impact statement from the landlord was read to the court. He said he suffered from a swollen throat and received injections in his back a few months later.

He described waking up in cold sweats over the next 12 months, thinking he was being strangled.

He said he was demoted in work due to stress.

The court heard the landlord and his wife have since moved abroad. The other tenant did not provide a victim impact statement.

Gda Connell agreed with Luigi Rea, defending, that there were no medical reports for either injured party.

It was also accepted that Lalor only brandished the knife and that he had taken a drink the night before.

Rea told the court his client does not accept the verdict. He said his instructions are that Lalor regrets renting the house, drinking the night before, his reaction and panicking.

He said he is also instructed that Lalor did not judge the situation correctly due to drinking, and wishes he had a camera phone to record what happened.

Rea said his client intends to attend counselling for his drinking and has a long work history.

Lalor keeps to himself in custody, wishes to return to working on his family farm in Co Laois and is willing to engage with the Probation Service, the court heard.

Judge Martina Baxter noted this was a “serious incident” and noted the impact on the injured parties.

She said the mitigation was limited as Lalor does not accept the verdict, but that there was an “element of remorse” in his instructions to his counsel.

She noted Lalor is willing to attend counselling, seems to be developing insight into his behaviour and must address anger management as well as his issues with alcohol.

She imposed a global sentence of two years, suspending the final 12 months on strict conditions, including 12 months post-release supervision by the Probation Services.

The judge backdated the sentence to February 4th last, when Lalor went into custody.