A Donegal barrister has been granted a firearms licence but told to undertake an anger management course within the next 12 months.
Mr Alexander Smyth was granted a licence for two firearms, a .410 over-under shotgun and a .22 rifle, following a protracted hearing before Judge Alan Mitchell at Letterkenny District Court.
Evidence and submissions in the lengthy case – running to about 15 hours – were heard at Letterkenny District Court until almost 9pm on Tuesday and Thursday before Judge Mitchell delivered his ruling on Friday afternoon.
Although not a precondition before granting a firearms licence to Mr Smyth, Judge Mitchell said the court required him to engage in an anger management course within 12 months and to provide proof of completion.
The court further required that Mr Smyth read the book How To Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie and subsequently provide Chief Supt Goretti Sheridan with a report on what he learned and five actions he intends to implement.
“He will get his licence, but I expect him to comply,” Judge Mitchell said.
Mr Smyth’s application was initially refused by Chief Supt Sheridan and then by Insp Paul McHugh, now the acting superintendent.
Chief Supt Sheridan said that, in refusing the application, she felt that the appellant “engaged in aggressive and antisocial behaviour on more than one occasion” and she didn’t feel it was “in the public interest” that he hold a firearms licence.
The firearms in question were handed into gardaí in June, 2023 by Mr Smyth, a barrister who also owns a veterinary practice in Convoy. Mr Smyth also works as a farmer and is on the Board of Trustees of the Irish Red Cross, with whom he has volunteered for over 10 years.
Mr Smyth said he has had firearms since 2008 having been first granted a licence when he was “just 18″ and has taken part in competitive shoots since he was 10 or 11 years old.
He said the initial decision to refuse his application was punitive as it would mean that he couldn’t attend sporting competitions as all such competitions have a declaration for participants to sign indicating that they are not barred from owning a firearm.
He said shooting for him was “a way of life and is a necessity for the farm”.
Chief Supt Sheridan said there were matters logged on the Garda Pulse system that she referred to in making the decision.
“I don’t refuse an application easily,” she said, noting that there are over 5,000 firearms certificates within the Letterkenny Garda District alone.
The court heard that Mr Smyth was given the benefit of the probation act in relation to an assault charge in August 2022. While he did not receive a conviction, the judge in the matter found the facts proven. This matter is subject to a judicial review in the High Court and Chief Supt Sheridan said that the investigation was ongoing when she made her decision.
The court heard that Louis Riordan and John McConville were working as Department of Agriculture inspectors in August, 2017 when they visited Smyth Veterinary Services near Convoy for the purpose of obtaining records.
Mr Smyth became “immediately very aggressive” when he arrived, the court heard. He denied this, saying it was a “fabrication from the outset”.
Mr McConville said he recalled that the discussion “went from amicable to explosive” when Mr Smyth arrived.
The department officials went to Lifford Garda station and asked Garda Gerard Hardiman to note their interactions with Mr Smyth, but did not make a formal complaint.
Det Gda John O’Sullivan told the court that he pulled into a filling station in Letterkenny on August 28th, 2021 and noticed a dash master light in the front of a Donegal-registered black jeep.
Det Garda O’Sullivan said his subsequent conversation with Mr Smyth became “very confrontational”.
“Everything I said, he questioned me back,” Det Gda O’Sullivan said, noting that Mr Smyth informed him that he was a paramedic in Northern Ireland at the time.
Mr Smyth told the court that he is registered to provide an ambulance service and can use a blue light in certain circumstances.
“It was just a conversation and it got very heated,” Det Gda O’Sullivan said.
The court also heard from a couple, Jay Ayton and Elaine Kelly, who outlined an incident with Mr Smyth at the veterinary practice on December 7th, 2021 after Ms Kelly’s dog, Bailey, was treated.
Mr Smyth told Judge Mitchell that he accepted that his choice of words to Ms Kelly were inappropriate.
Mr Smyth told the court that he is a Christian, has never taken alcohol or drugs and has never smoked, while he has acted as chief ambulance officer and member in charge of the Rossnowlagh Twelfth – an annual Orange Order parade held on the Saturday before July 12th in the Co Donegal village.
He said he held a number of firearms over 14 years and did so “without issue to public safety”. He told the court that he is “trained appropriately” in the use of firearms and has secure storage.
The Judge said he was “only just” coming down on the side of Mr Smyth, but said that the matter should be considered a “wake-up call” for the applicant, who should now reflect on his behaviour and recommended that gardaí bring forward a revocation application if there were any further incidents.
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