A 29-year-old father of three who lost his job as a security man due to his involvement in the riot at last year's Love Ulster parade in Dublin has been sentenced to two years in jail.
Mark Freer's photograph appeared on the front page of the Star on Sundaynewspaper the day after the riot in a shot taken of a number of youths on O'Connell Street. His employer recognised him and reported him to gardaí.
Freer, of Russell View, Jobstown, pleaded guilty before Dublin Circuit Criminal Court today to violent disorder on February 25th, 2006.
Judge Katherine Delahunt suspended the last 12 months of the sentence on condition he enter into a bond to be of good behaviour.
She heard Freer had covered his face with a tricolour flag and threw missiles such as rocks, slabs, stones and barriers at gardaí.
DetGarda Peter Collins earlier told prosecuting counsel that Freer was arrested and questioned a month later and accepted that he had attended the parade in order to protest.
He agreed that he had thrown five or six missiles and accepted such action could have caused injury and did put people in fear.
Freer was shown various photographs and video footage of him with his fist raised and shouting and with a brick in his hand.
Defence counsel said his client had no previous convictions and had become "enthusiastically involved" in what he described as an afternoon of "national and international shame".
Counsel for Freer said his client had intended to protest but was not an organiser of the riot and became unhappy when the incident "turned into widespread criminality such as looting and burning of cars". He removed himself from the event when it became a "criminal rampage".
The court heard Freer was sacked from his job as a result but has since found work. His counsel said he felt remorse if innocent people or gardaí were hurt on the day.
Counsel said it was unusual and embarrassing to have to address the court in relation to a man of his client's age who had come before the court for the first time for something so serious and inexplicable.