The grandmother of a protesting inmate was lifted up in a hoist to try to talk him down from a prison roof, a court has heard.
Eric Harcourt (22) climbed onto the roof of Cloverhill Prison using clothing that other prisoners had tossed up to prevent him being injured by razor wire. He remained on the roof for hours with another inmate, Dean Byrne (25).
Both men refused attempts from the prison negotiator and both their grandmothers to persuade them to come down, Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard.
Harcourt, of Belcamp Grove, Priorswood, pleaded guilty to violent disorder at Cloverhill Prison, Clondalkin, on July 29th, 2015.
Judge Martin Nolan said Harcourt was an active participant in the violent disorder and that it was a good thing nobody was injured when he threw debris off the roof. He imposed a six month sentence consecutive to Harcourt’s current jail term, which is due to end in April 2019.
Harcourt has 74 previous convictions and was on remand at the time for an offence of endangerment, for which he received a 4½ year sentence.
Det Garda Donal Daly told Róisín Lacey SC, prosecuting, that the riot broke out in the prison yard after up to 64 inmates had been “expressing disgruntlement” about disciplinary matters.
He said a prison officer saw Harcourt helping to carry one of the yard’s goal posts to a nearby observational hub, where it was used to smash the windows and rip razor wire off the roof. Harcourt was then seen climbing onto the roof and smashing windows with a long metal pole. Water hoses were deployed to prevent other prisoners climbing up.
Det Garda Daly said Harcourt was seen throwing “debris” onto prison officers below and that he smashed an aerial that had been connected to a pipe.
Prison officers used hoists to get the negotiator and Harcourt’s grandmother up to roof level in a bid to get him to come down once the violent disorder had abated.
The riot began at 11am and Harcourt eventually descended at 1.30am the following day.
Det Garda Daly agreed with Ronan Munro SC, defending, that nothing happened on the roof for large periods of time after the violent disorder was resolved a few hours after it started.
He agreed that Harcourt, a father-of-one, had very low cognitive ability and was one of the youngest prisoners in the yard.
He asked the judge not to “close the door completely” on his client when passing the mandatory consecutive sentence.
Byrne, of Belcamp Crescent Priorswood, received a six month consecutive sentence for aiding and abetting violent disorder on the same date.