Gardaí oppose bail in Newbridge assault cause

A MAN was refused bail again after being charged with assault causing serious harm to a 24-year-old woman in an incident in Newbridge in early December.

At Naas District Court this week, Judge Des Zaidan remanded Cian Leavy (22) of Carriagmount House, Caragh, following the alleged assault in St Conleth’s car park on Dawn Hamill (24) from Newbridge on 3-4 December.

Detective Garda Patrick Robbins gave evidence that Mr Leavy was arrested that morning to be recharged with the more serious assault charge, having previously been charged with just assault causing harm.

“This is a very strong charge. After murder and manslaughter, this is the third most serious charge in the state,” said the judge.

“I remember this, she was left in a pool of blood for the milkman to find in the morning,” he said to Sergeant Dave Hanrahan, prosecuting, and the sergeant nodded.

“On 3 December at the back of Bradbury’s Café he assaulted Dawn Hammill, he assaulted her for ten minutes, kicked her and punched her, left her there unconscious for eight hours,” alleged the sergeant.

At a previous hearing, the judge noted: “The injured party was totally unrecognisable”, and ten days later was “still on life support”.

This week, he enquired about the present condition of the injured party and was told she had regained consciousness but “is awaiting surgery to her eye socket”.

“Life-changing injuries?” said the judge, and Sgt Hanrahan agreed.

“She was lying in a pool of blood in a coma?” he recalled.

“Yes, judge,” the sergeant confirmed.

Det Gda Robbins continued in his objections to bail and sought a further two weeks on remand, when he predicted the book of evidence would be ready for presenting.

Chloe Donegan, defending Mr Leavy on behalf of Tim Kennelly Solicitors, told the court her client would not consent to this, and so the judge was left with no option but to remand him into further custody for another week – the longest available to a court without a defendant’s consent – to reappear again by videolink on 27 February.

Mr Leavy has been in custody since 13 December.

He had been initially arrested on 6 December but released and admitted to Naas Hospital for a psychiatric evaluation. On his release a week later, he presented himself to Kildare Garda Station, where he made a voluntary statement.

At his court appearance on 23 January, his solicitor Tim Kennelly offered some background.

He claimed: “Judge, they wanted to purchase street Xanax together. He went and purchased the Xanax and they went drinking together all day. There is CCTV evidence.”