A 40-year-old county Limerick farmer has been returned to prison after he refused to purge his contempt at Limerick Circuit Court last week.
Daniel Doherty of Rathcahill, Templeglantine, appeared before Limerick Circuit Court last Friday after failing to obey a court order where he was to vacate a farm holding and dwellings owned by two bachelor brothers who died without leaving a will.
A week earlier, he had been sent to prison for refusing to obey the order. He was returned to Limerick Circuit Court to see if he would purge his contempt.
Mr Doherty had claimed through earlier proceedings, lasting some seven years, that the brothers wished him to stay and remain at the farm with his cattle.
However, circuit and high court appearances supported that indeed, Mr Doherty was to leave the land in question.
The 40-acre holding, owned by Edward and Mattie Roche, was tended to by Daniel Doherty as he assisted them over a number of years.
Last Friday, Judge Carroll Moran asked Daniel Doherty if he would obey the court order and leave the farm as per the order handed down by the courts on March 4, 2010.
Doherty stated, after his solicitor came off record, that he was not going to go against the wishes of the dead brothers.
“I was with them the day Mattie died, I was there when he got the stroke by the fire. I’m not going to go against Mattie’s wishes”.
Emmet O’Brien, barrister for the Roche family, said that “enough was enough” when speaking of the situation with Mr Doherty refusing to vacate the land and remove his 15 head of dry stock and a single milking cow.
With members of the Roche family in court, Emmet O’Brien told the court that after the alleged “incidents” during the arrest of Mr Doherty the week before, the family did not wish to engage or further deal with Daniel Doherty or any of his brothers as tensions were already high. Nor was it their responsibility to do so he claimed.
As the court order had not been adhered to, proceedings had been brought by Eamon Roche to have the matter dealt with at the Circuit Court.
Doherty had claimed that he helped the brothers milk cows and save hay and that Mattie Roche had invited him on to the land with his cows. This however, was disputed by the estate of the Roche brothers.
Appeals had failed to have the order overturned and the High Court upheld the vacation order.
John Cussen, solicitor representing Mr Roche, told the court that his client was not giving him further instruction and therefore, he could not advance the case any further.
“In the words of Maggie Thatcher, Danny is not for turning,” added the county Limerick solicitor as he applied to come off record and not represent Daniel Doherty any further.
Emmet O’Brien advanced the matter and stated that Mr Doherty’s brother was looking after the cattle following Judge Carroll Moran asking what the Roche family proposed to do regarding the cattle belonging to Mr Doherty. Emmet O’Brien added that the plaintiffs should not have to do anything with the moving of cattle as it was not a “big logistical event” to move them.
He added that it should be the responsibility of the Doherty brothers, and given the tensions between the families, it was something that they did not wish to do.
However, after a brief adjournment, the court was told that the Roche family were willing to move Doherty’s cattle to a neighbouring farm, only if they had a garda escort.
Judge Carroll Moran then repeatedly asked Daniel Doherty if he would again purge his contempt of the court order by refusing to leave the land but he repeatedly said that he could not go against “Mattie’s wishes”. The judge told him that he would have to stay in prison until he decided to obey the order. Liberty to re-enter the matter was granted to the State should Doherty wish to purge his contempt.
Daniel Doherty was returned to Limerick Prison, with Judge Carroll Moran stating; “I don’t want to keep you there a minute longer than I have to”.
