Page 6 - Irish Examiner USA

newsexaminer
6

Only 40% Of Court Fines From
2019 Michael Collins And Arthur Griffith 2017 And 2018 Have Been Paid

21st, Commemorated At Glasnevin

August ichael Collins and Arthur of the foundation of Dáil

Griffith have been Eireann, one of the most signif-
| Mremembered at their icant events in the Decade of
EXAMINER GlasnevinCemetery. contribution that both men
Centenaries,” she said.
at
annual
commemoration
“We recall the immense
The 97th annual commemo-
ration was led by Minister for
made as members of the Dáil
IRISH Culture, Heritage and the and the cabinet.”
“Today’s commemoration
Gaeltacht Josepha Madigan,
of
the
chairman
Only 40% of court fines handed out in 2017 and 2018 have
C o l l i n s / G r i f f i t h provides us with an opportuni- been paid so far.
ty to reflect upon that contribu-
Commemoration Society The ceremony also heard a tion to our enduring parliamen- According to details released under the Freedom of
William Lavelle, and chairman reading of the Declaration of tary tradition.” Information Act, €14m in fines are still outstanding from the two
of the Glasnevin Trust John Independence of the First Dáil Following the wreath-laying years.
Green. from John Stanton, and the ceremony and readings, a In 2017, just over €22m worth of court fines were imposed
One of the oldest commem- Democratic Program of First minute’s silence was held, fol-
orations in the State saw the Dáil by Seamus Scally, both of lowed by the sounding of the across Ireland, but only €10.9m worth were paid, a payment rate
raising of the national flag at the the Collins/Griffith Last Post and Reveille. of less than 49%.
Sigerson Monument by the Commemoration Society. The Defense Forces also par- The following year, fines worth €21.2m were handed out by
Defense Forces, and a wreath- The prayers at the graveside, ticipated in the commemora- judges in Irish courts but just €6.9m have been recovered so far.
laying ceremony at the graves which dates back to 1923, was tion ceremony, with the Sliabh It is a payment rate of only 32%.
of General Michael Collins, led by Geraldine Dalton. na mBan armoured car on dis- Athlone solicitor John Keogh claims it is down to a system
Arthur Griffith and Eamonn Ms Madigan said it was play. introduced in 2016 that cut the number of people jailed for refus-
Duggan. important to continue to The Sliabh na mBan formed ing to pay.
The annual oration at remember the contributions part of Collins’s convoy which “I’m a bit surprised by levels of non-payment of the fines,” said
Collins’s graveside was given made by Collins and Griffith on was ambushed on August 22, Mr Keogh.
by author and journalist Justine the path to independence. 1922, at Beal na mBlath in West “I think that they should perhaps look at going back to the old
McCarthy. “2019 marks the centenary Cork, resulting in his death. C system.
“For all the faults of the old system, it perhaps was a better sys-
tem from the point of view of ensuring that the penalty was
imposed.”
Limerick had a particularly poor payment rate in 2017 with
only 22% of fines paid, while Clonmel's was 26%.
For 2018, there has been a 26% collection rate in Dublin with
nearly €4.6m worth of fines unpaid so far.
In Galway, the collection rate last year was 32% and it was
35% in Cork city. C

McGregor Expected To Be Charged With
Assault For Incident In Dublin Pub

Conor McGregor is
expected to be charged with
assault after allegedly punch-
ing a man in a Dublin pub.
Video footage of the inci-
dent, which is alleged to have
happened in April at the
Marble Arch Pub in
Drimnagh, Dublin, was pub-
lished online yesterday.
The video appears to then
show McGregor hitting out
towards the man, before
being quickly escorted out of the bar.
Gardaí have confirmed that investigations are ongoing, and
it’s understood a file has been sent to the DPP, but no arrests have
been made.
Meanwhile, the head of the UFC says Conor McGregor
should know better.
Dana White said people are only talking about it because it’s
Conor McGregor.
He said: “You’re talking about a pub in Ireland? Do you know
how many guys get punched in the face in a pub in Ireland? Yeah,
a lot.
“The only reason people are talking about it right now is
because it’s Conor. When you’re not a regular guy, you’re a high
profile guy and a professional fighter, you can’t do it.” C