A man described as "actively engaged in crime" has been jailed for seven years by Judge Pat McCartan for causing criminal damage to cars during a high-speed chase by gardai in 1994. Before sentencing the judge heard he had 19 previous convictions.
Ian Dutton (36), married and father of four children, of Greenfort Lawn, Clondalkin, was found guilty by a jury at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court of three offences committed on November 23rd, 1994. He had pleaded not guilty during his two-day trial.
Judge McCartan told the jury, which took less than 30 minutes to return unanimous guilty verdicts, that he agreed fully with its decision. He noted that in a notice of alibi, submitted in 1995 on his behalf, Dutton claimed he had been talking to a named person before his arrest, but in his sworn testimony in the trial he gave a version which was totally at variance with that alibi. "The jury saw through your story and returned the only verdict possible from the evidence given in this case," the judge said.
"I was impressed to a great extent in this case by the Garda evidence, which left no room for doubt."
Det Garda Gerard Mullaney told prosecuting counsel, Mr Adrian Mannering, that Dutton was "actively involved in crime" and had 19 previous convictions dating from 1978 when he was sent to Loughan House for two years.
Dutton's previous convictions included unauthorised taking of cars, drugs offences and burglary. He was released last April after serving a six-month sentence.
Judge McCartan told Dutton he had acted with "appalling disregard" for the lives of innocent people on November 23rd, 1994. He had driven a stolen Audi car at gardai with the intention of running them down so that co-conspirators could escape, and then drove from Churchtown to Ballyfermot at speeds reaching 80 m.p.h. through red traffic lights before his arrest.
"You have contested this case, which was your right, but that leaves little in mercy that can be extended to you in view of the jury's verdict, and you must pay a price with a sentence that is close to the maximum," he said.
Det Sgt Gerard Roche described having to jump out of the path of the stolen Audi as he crossed a road in pursuit of the occupants of a stolen Peugeot car, which had crashed while driving in convoy with the Audi.
Shortly afterwards, in Dundrum station, when Sgt Roche put it to Dutton that he had tried to run him down, he replied: "F... off. I wasn't in any stolen car."
Dutton drove the Audi on three wheels most of the way from Churchtown to Ballyfermot and at one stage reversed it into a patrol car, causing damage worth £700.
He was arrested while trying to scale the wall of a garage in the front garden of a house in O'Hogan Road, Ballyfermot.
The jury heard the Audi was owned by the EBS building society and it cost £5,000 to repair the car, which had been stolen from Jury's Hotel car-park in August 1994.