Andrew Carey
A LETTER submitted to a drugs trial from Fianna Fail spokesperson for Justice was said to have had “no influence” on the decision of a Circuit Court judge to suspend a three year prison sentence for a convicted drug dealer.
Stating that Hugo Porter, a widowed father of four boys, was “a very luck man”, Judge Carroll Moran warned that the convicted drug dealing had a responsibility to his children and that he was never to get into trouble again.
The evidence was heard in the adjourned sentencing hearing of the 40-year-old who was convicted of having drugs for sale in County Limerick in 2011.
Porter was seen emerging from a field in Castleconnell, County Limerick with a quantity of drugs which were “packaged for sale”. His co-accused was in an awaiting jeep checking off a list of customers.
Hugo Porter, along with co-accused Alan Lysaght, were said to “equally culpable” in their drug dealing operation where there was evidence put before the court of further drugs stashed in ammunition boxes and customer “tick lists” found.
In his sentencing address, Judge Carroll Moran said that Porter and Lysaght were caught with a total of €17,698 in cannabis herb and resin and that the two men were “acting in concert”.
Noting that although the 40-year-old was caught with only €2,700 in his possession and that the rest of the drugs were stashed in the field, Judge Moran said that it was an aggravating factor that the “drugs were in small packages for sale”.
Judge Moran also said that the Porter had “numerous convictions” as well as a recent conviction for an assault and the production of an article in a dispute in Clare. Porter received a two year suspended sentence for that offence but it was not activated as time of suspension had since lapsed
However, in mitigation, Judge Moran outlined that an “extensive report” concerning the welfare of Hugo Porter’s four children was submitted to the court.
Offering his condolences to the accused because his wife died tragically earlier this year when she took her own life, Judge Moran said that the report from the Child and Family agency said they had “no concerns for the upbringing of the children by Hugo Porter as the sole surviving parent”.
Judge Moran said that the report said that arrangements had been made in the event the 40-year-old was jailed “but if he was sent to prison it would create instability for the children and instability for the family”.
Citing a judgement from the Court of Criminal Appeal that had been opened to him, Judge Moran said that in cases where exceptional and special circumstances a prison sentence could be suspended.
He added that the circumstances had to be “wholly exceptional”.
Judge Moran said that he was mindful of the tragic death of Hugo Porter’s wife, the report’s outline as to his positive parenting and the undue punishment that the boys would get if he was jailed, therefore he imposed a three year prison sentence but suspended it for a period of three years.
Warning Hugo Porter as to his further conduct and the suspended sentence he had just received, Judge Moran said “you are a very lucky man and you have a responsibility to your sons to never get into trouble again.
“Because of the attention it attracted, I feel I have to mention it, but a politician who wrote a letter did so with the best of intentions and motives and I believe that to be the case. But I have to say that it had no influence on my decision at all and I will say no more on the matter”.
