A 28-year-old school teacher has told a Dublin Circuit Criminal Court jury he was punched in the face and subsequently beaten with a baton by gardaí as he lay on the ground at the Reclaim the Streets demonstration on May Day 2002.
Garda Paul Daly and Garda Fergus Hogan, who are both attached to Pearse Street Garda station, have pleaded not guilty to assault causing harm to Mr Emmet Bunting on May 6th, 2002.
Mr Tom O'Connell SC (with Mr Bernard Condon BL), prosecuting, said in opening the case that while Mr Bunting claimed he also received other blows earlier on the same afternoon, there was no allegation that the two accused were responsible for this attack.
Mr Bunting, Collins Avenue, Dublin, who was 25 at the time, said he was standing on Dame Street waiting to meet his girlfriend when he noticed the gardaí dispersing the demonstrators.
He told the jury he was chanting "Nazis! Gestapo! Peaceful protest!" along with other protesters when he noted gardaí being "very heavy-handed and aggressive".
He and his companions were moving up Dame Street towards City Hall when gardaí began assaulting people.
Mr Bunting said he panicked and ran away with his girlfriend onto Trinity Street. He was moving onto Dame Lane but was blocked by gardaí and his girlfriend was separated from him. He tried to persuade them to allow him onto the street so he could find her.
He received a blow to the side of his face from a gloved hand and was kicked when he fell to the ground. He fought to get to his feet but was held by the belt of his trousers and received another blow to the head. He managed to retain his footing and escaped to meet his girlfriend on Exchequer Street.
Mr Bunting told Mr O'Connell it was the gardaí who hit him but he did not see their faces. He further agreed that he had not received any injuries from this attack.
Mr Bunting said he then proceeded onto Dame Street and noticed the crowd was more orderly. He was on the junction of Parliament Street and Dame Street when he received a punch to the face. He knew it was a garda who hit him because he was wearing a fluorescent yellow jacket.
The last thing he recalled was seeing the sky above him before he was taken to hospital in an ambulance. He subsequently witnessed himself on video footage, being beaten with batons as he lay on the ground from the impact of the attack.
Witness identified himself on three pieces of video material to the jury.
Mr Bunting told counsel he was taken to St James's Hospital but because his injuries were so severe, casualty could not help him. He was seen the next day by a plastic surgeon when he received 14 stitches to his upper and lower lip. His front teeth were shattered in the attack and he is still attending a dentist to assist with this.
The trial continues.