Latest news with #Fitzgerald
Irish Examiner
a day ago
- Politics
- Irish Examiner
Justice minister found out from Labour TD that gardaí had supplied Carlow shooting gun
Labour TD Alan Kelly has told the Dáil that he informed the justice minister of the details of a gun that was supplied by the gardaí in the Evan Fitzgerald case. The 22-year-old was on bail for gun charges when he fired shots in a Carlow shopping centre before fatally shooting himself. It emerged that Mr Fitzgerald was supplied with guns and ammunition by undercover gardaí as part of a controlled operation. Speaking under Dáil privilege, Mr Kelly said that under section 41 of the Garda Síochána Act 2005, the garda commissioner must inform the justice minister about any major issues, before asking: "Why did the garda commissioner not brief the minister for justice on the details of this case and the facts that there was an undercover operation and that the guns were supplied by An Garda Síochána?" He added: "More important, is it appropriate and right that I, as a member of the opposition, had to ring the minister for justice about this and inform him about it? Is it correct that I had to tell him to go to the garda commissioner to ask him about the full details of this case? "Would we have ever known the full details of the case considering what was said in court on March 4 last year? Would we have ever known the full details if I had not to ring the minister for justice on June 3 in relation to this?" Responding, Tánaiste Simon Harris extended his sympathy to Mr Fitzgerald's family, but described it as a "complex case". "Obviously, I am not privy, nor should I be, to when the garda commissioner does or does not use the provision in the act. That is a matter between the commissioner and the minister, but I understand the minister for justice has sought further information from the garda commissioner on the case." A spokesperson for Mr O'Callaghan confirmed that Mr Kelly had rang him on June 3. The minister then made contact with the garda commissioner. Appearing before the Oireachtas Justice Committee last week, Drew Harris confirmed that the guns Fitzgerald had purchased from the dark web were part of a "controlled delivery" operation. "I would say that controlled delivery is very sensitive police methodology," Commissioner Harris said. "We use it for both organised crime and for our terrorist defence." Mr Harris said Fiosrú, the Office of the Police Ombudsman, had looked into the issue. "They have since examined the investigation file that was submitted by the Drugs and Organised Crime Bureau to the DPP, and they've responded that they have no further action that they wish to take in pursuance," he said.
Irish Independent
a day ago
- Politics
- Irish Independent
Tension over political 'pact' marks opening of Meath's Municipal District AGM
The meeting had just begun when outgoing Cathaoirleach, Independent Councillor, Nick Killian, started the nominations for the new Cathaoirleach and proposed Brian Fitzgerald, another Independent councillor who just celebrated 40 years in service, for the role. The nomination was seconded by Councillor Caroline O'Reilly from Fianna Fáil. As the vote proceeded, Cllr Fitzgerald received support from his fellow colleagues; Fionnan Blake, Nick Killian, Maria Murphy, Gerry O'Connor, and Caroline O'Reilly. However, when it was time for Councillor Yvonne Everard to vote, she voiced some concerns before casting her support for Mr Fitzgerald. Cllr Everard, who replaced former councillor Gillian Toole following her election to the Dáil, said that Ms Toole had been part of a 'pact' within the Municipal District and expressed her disappointment that she had not been consulted or included in any related discussions since taking her seat. Her remarks prompted immediate pushback - the outgoing Cathaoirleach, Cllr Killian, said the meeting was not the appropriate time for such a discussion and declined to allow it to proceed further. Cllr Maria Murphy (FG) also stated the issue was not a matter for the AGM while Cllr Blake (SF) suggested the topic could be addressed at a later time. Before confirming her vote for Cllr Fitzgerald, Cllr Everard requested that her comments be noted. Meanwhile Cllr Fitzgerald voted for himself, making the election result unanimous. The meeting then moved to the election of Leas-Cathaoirleach. Sinn Féin's Cllr Fionnan Blake, was nominated by Cllr Killian and seconded by Cllr Everard. Cllr Maria Murphy nominated Cllr Gerry O'Connor for the role. With the support of of Cllrs Everard, Fitzgerald, Killian, O'Reilly, Cllr Blake was elected Leas-Cathaoirleach.
Irish Independent
a day ago
- Politics
- Irish Independent
Alan Kelly asks why it was left to him to give Justice Minister details on Carlow shooter
Mr Fitzgerald (22) entered the Fairgreen Shopping Centre in Carlow town on June 1 and discharged a number of rounds from a shotgun before taking his own life. He had been facing 13 charges for possessing military-grade guns, ammunition and explosive substances following a garda investigation into the purchase of firearms on the dark web. Last week Mr Kelly queried the manner of the garda operation leading to Mr Fitzgerald's arrest, including deploying undercover detectives to carry out a 'controlled delivery' of decommissioned weapons. Separately, Independent senator Michael McDowell told the Seanad that the events in Carlow 'could have been avoided' through diversion rather than 'entrapment' or prosecution by gardaí. Today, Mr Kelly said Mr Fitzgerald had "tragically and very publicly" taken his own life after getting bail following an undercover garda operation and being charged. "I'm asking why the Garda Commissioner didn't inform and brief the Minister for Justice of the details of this case," Mr Kelly said, citing legislation requiring that this be done. The details the Minister should have been briefed on, Mr Kelly argued, included "the fact that it was undercover and the guns were supplied by An Garda Síochána." He added: "Is it right that I, as a member of the opposition, had to ring the Minister for Justice in relation to this and inform him of that? "I had to go and tell him to go to the Garda Commissioner to ask him about the full details in relation to this case. "Would we have ever known about the full details relation to this case, considering what was said in court, if I hadn't contacted the Minister for Justice on June 3 in relation to this?" Tánaiste Simon Harris expressed sympathy with Mr Fitzgerald's family, saying he was "a county man of mine, and I know it's been a great shock in the local community in Wicklow as well." The Fine Gael leader suggested that it was "a complex case." He added: "I'm obviously not privy - nor should I be - to when the Garda Commissioner does and doesn't use that provision in the Act [to inform the Minister for Justice]. "That's a matter between himself and the minister. But I do understand that the Minister for Justice has sought further information from the Garda Commissioner on the case. "I also not the comments of the Taoiseach last week in relation to this issue and a need for a review.
The Advertiser
2 days ago
- The Advertiser
Stalking 'critical point of intervention' to break cycle of coercive control
Rates of coercive control in regional NSW are 60 per cent higher than the state average, according to the latest quarterly Coercive Control Monitoring report. The Far West and Orana regions, which include the regional centres of Dubbo and Broken Hill, were the worst areas in the state for coercive control, with a rate four times higher than the state average. The Central West, Murray and New England North West regions were not far behind, more than double the NSW average. The report, released on June 19 by the NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research (BOSCAR), found there had been 224 coercive control incidents in NSW since new laws were introduced in 2024. Five had charges laid for coercive control and a further 91 had charges laid for other domestic and family violence offences, but not coercive control. Thirty-four per cent of victims were in the 30-39 year age bracket and 10 per cent of victims were Aboriginal. BOSCAR's executive director, Jackie Fitzgerald, labelled the result "unsurprising" to ACM, the publisher of this masthead. "We know that DV is higher in the regions; that is a pretty consistent pattern in crime statistics," she said. "It is an unfortunate element of the crime landscape in NSW." READ MORE: Sins of the father: the link between unloving dads and domestic violence "There is a whole range of issues in regional communities that are not as apparent in Sydney. "Economic disadvantage, lower employment rates, educational performance, and even health outcomes, are more problematic in regional NSW." A new offence of coercive control was introduced in NSW on July 1, 2024. The offence relates to abusive behaviours directed towards a current or former intimate partner with the intention to coerce or control them. Ms Fitzgerald said they were still waiting for a test case to indicate how the courts treat coercive control charges. "Only one coercive control case has gone to court in NSW, and the person pleaded guilty," she said. ANU criminologist Dr Hayley Boxall said it was concerning how few incidents result in formal proceedings. "Of the 224 incidents reported by BOCSAR, 127 didn't result in any charges being laid at all," she said. "So what's concerning for me is that we're not seeing widespread use of the new legislation yet. Police are still relying on other offences to take action, and that suggests there might be barriers to progressing coercive control charges." "I think we really need to take a closer look at why that's happening." The most common coercive control behaviours identified were harassment, monitoring and tracking, followed by threats or intimidation and financial abuse. Around 60 per cent of incidents recorded multiple offences. The most common co-occurrence offences with coercive control were intimidation and stalking, DV assault, and malicious damage. Dr Boxall described co-occurrence offences such as stalking as a "critical point of intervention". READ MORE: 'I was instantly homeless': Women who prepare 'go bags' to escape violence "This is where we have a real opportunity to stop the escalation of abuse," she said. "But when it comes to reducing coercive control more broadly, I don't think it's helpful to pull the behaviours apart too much, to say 'this bit is about property damage' or 'this bit is about intimidation'. "We need to look at the bigger picture. "Coercive control is about patterns - it's about the way these behaviours interact and compound over time." Rates of coercive control in regional NSW are 60 per cent higher than the state average, according to the latest quarterly Coercive Control Monitoring report. The Far West and Orana regions, which include the regional centres of Dubbo and Broken Hill, were the worst areas in the state for coercive control, with a rate four times higher than the state average. The Central West, Murray and New England North West regions were not far behind, more than double the NSW average. The report, released on June 19 by the NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research (BOSCAR), found there had been 224 coercive control incidents in NSW since new laws were introduced in 2024. Five had charges laid for coercive control and a further 91 had charges laid for other domestic and family violence offences, but not coercive control. Thirty-four per cent of victims were in the 30-39 year age bracket and 10 per cent of victims were Aboriginal. BOSCAR's executive director, Jackie Fitzgerald, labelled the result "unsurprising" to ACM, the publisher of this masthead. "We know that DV is higher in the regions; that is a pretty consistent pattern in crime statistics," she said. "It is an unfortunate element of the crime landscape in NSW." READ MORE: Sins of the father: the link between unloving dads and domestic violence "There is a whole range of issues in regional communities that are not as apparent in Sydney. "Economic disadvantage, lower employment rates, educational performance, and even health outcomes, are more problematic in regional NSW." A new offence of coercive control was introduced in NSW on July 1, 2024. The offence relates to abusive behaviours directed towards a current or former intimate partner with the intention to coerce or control them. Ms Fitzgerald said they were still waiting for a test case to indicate how the courts treat coercive control charges. "Only one coercive control case has gone to court in NSW, and the person pleaded guilty," she said. ANU criminologist Dr Hayley Boxall said it was concerning how few incidents result in formal proceedings. "Of the 224 incidents reported by BOCSAR, 127 didn't result in any charges being laid at all," she said. "So what's concerning for me is that we're not seeing widespread use of the new legislation yet. Police are still relying on other offences to take action, and that suggests there might be barriers to progressing coercive control charges." "I think we really need to take a closer look at why that's happening." The most common coercive control behaviours identified were harassment, monitoring and tracking, followed by threats or intimidation and financial abuse. Around 60 per cent of incidents recorded multiple offences. The most common co-occurrence offences with coercive control were intimidation and stalking, DV assault, and malicious damage. Dr Boxall described co-occurrence offences such as stalking as a "critical point of intervention". READ MORE: 'I was instantly homeless': Women who prepare 'go bags' to escape violence "This is where we have a real opportunity to stop the escalation of abuse," she said. "But when it comes to reducing coercive control more broadly, I don't think it's helpful to pull the behaviours apart too much, to say 'this bit is about property damage' or 'this bit is about intimidation'. "We need to look at the bigger picture. "Coercive control is about patterns - it's about the way these behaviours interact and compound over time." Rates of coercive control in regional NSW are 60 per cent higher than the state average, according to the latest quarterly Coercive Control Monitoring report. The Far West and Orana regions, which include the regional centres of Dubbo and Broken Hill, were the worst areas in the state for coercive control, with a rate four times higher than the state average. The Central West, Murray and New England North West regions were not far behind, more than double the NSW average. The report, released on June 19 by the NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research (BOSCAR), found there had been 224 coercive control incidents in NSW since new laws were introduced in 2024. Five had charges laid for coercive control and a further 91 had charges laid for other domestic and family violence offences, but not coercive control. Thirty-four per cent of victims were in the 30-39 year age bracket and 10 per cent of victims were Aboriginal. BOSCAR's executive director, Jackie Fitzgerald, labelled the result "unsurprising" to ACM, the publisher of this masthead. "We know that DV is higher in the regions; that is a pretty consistent pattern in crime statistics," she said. "It is an unfortunate element of the crime landscape in NSW." READ MORE: Sins of the father: the link between unloving dads and domestic violence "There is a whole range of issues in regional communities that are not as apparent in Sydney. "Economic disadvantage, lower employment rates, educational performance, and even health outcomes, are more problematic in regional NSW." A new offence of coercive control was introduced in NSW on July 1, 2024. The offence relates to abusive behaviours directed towards a current or former intimate partner with the intention to coerce or control them. Ms Fitzgerald said they were still waiting for a test case to indicate how the courts treat coercive control charges. "Only one coercive control case has gone to court in NSW, and the person pleaded guilty," she said. ANU criminologist Dr Hayley Boxall said it was concerning how few incidents result in formal proceedings. "Of the 224 incidents reported by BOCSAR, 127 didn't result in any charges being laid at all," she said. "So what's concerning for me is that we're not seeing widespread use of the new legislation yet. Police are still relying on other offences to take action, and that suggests there might be barriers to progressing coercive control charges." "I think we really need to take a closer look at why that's happening." The most common coercive control behaviours identified were harassment, monitoring and tracking, followed by threats or intimidation and financial abuse. Around 60 per cent of incidents recorded multiple offences. The most common co-occurrence offences with coercive control were intimidation and stalking, DV assault, and malicious damage. Dr Boxall described co-occurrence offences such as stalking as a "critical point of intervention". READ MORE: 'I was instantly homeless': Women who prepare 'go bags' to escape violence "This is where we have a real opportunity to stop the escalation of abuse," she said. "But when it comes to reducing coercive control more broadly, I don't think it's helpful to pull the behaviours apart too much, to say 'this bit is about property damage' or 'this bit is about intimidation'. "We need to look at the bigger picture. "Coercive control is about patterns - it's about the way these behaviours interact and compound over time." Rates of coercive control in regional NSW are 60 per cent higher than the state average, according to the latest quarterly Coercive Control Monitoring report. The Far West and Orana regions, which include the regional centres of Dubbo and Broken Hill, were the worst areas in the state for coercive control, with a rate four times higher than the state average. The Central West, Murray and New England North West regions were not far behind, more than double the NSW average. The report, released on June 19 by the NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research (BOSCAR), found there had been 224 coercive control incidents in NSW since new laws were introduced in 2024. Five had charges laid for coercive control and a further 91 had charges laid for other domestic and family violence offences, but not coercive control. Thirty-four per cent of victims were in the 30-39 year age bracket and 10 per cent of victims were Aboriginal. BOSCAR's executive director, Jackie Fitzgerald, labelled the result "unsurprising" to ACM, the publisher of this masthead. "We know that DV is higher in the regions; that is a pretty consistent pattern in crime statistics," she said. "It is an unfortunate element of the crime landscape in NSW." READ MORE: Sins of the father: the link between unloving dads and domestic violence "There is a whole range of issues in regional communities that are not as apparent in Sydney. "Economic disadvantage, lower employment rates, educational performance, and even health outcomes, are more problematic in regional NSW." A new offence of coercive control was introduced in NSW on July 1, 2024. The offence relates to abusive behaviours directed towards a current or former intimate partner with the intention to coerce or control them. Ms Fitzgerald said they were still waiting for a test case to indicate how the courts treat coercive control charges. "Only one coercive control case has gone to court in NSW, and the person pleaded guilty," she said. ANU criminologist Dr Hayley Boxall said it was concerning how few incidents result in formal proceedings. "Of the 224 incidents reported by BOCSAR, 127 didn't result in any charges being laid at all," she said. "So what's concerning for me is that we're not seeing widespread use of the new legislation yet. Police are still relying on other offences to take action, and that suggests there might be barriers to progressing coercive control charges." "I think we really need to take a closer look at why that's happening." The most common coercive control behaviours identified were harassment, monitoring and tracking, followed by threats or intimidation and financial abuse. Around 60 per cent of incidents recorded multiple offences. The most common co-occurrence offences with coercive control were intimidation and stalking, DV assault, and malicious damage. Dr Boxall described co-occurrence offences such as stalking as a "critical point of intervention". READ MORE: 'I was instantly homeless': Women who prepare 'go bags' to escape violence "This is where we have a real opportunity to stop the escalation of abuse," she said. "But when it comes to reducing coercive control more broadly, I don't think it's helpful to pull the behaviours apart too much, to say 'this bit is about property damage' or 'this bit is about intimidation'. "We need to look at the bigger picture. "Coercive control is about patterns - it's about the way these behaviours interact and compound over time."
Time of India
2 days ago
- Sport
- Time of India
"Keep em coming": 4-star RB Javian Osborne reacts to prediction for Devin Fitzgerald to Notre Dame
Image Source: On3 Four-star running back Javian Osborne is excited about Notre Dame's growing 2026 recruiting class. He retweeted an On3 post predicting that three-star wide receiver Devin Fitzgerald might commit to the Fighting Irish, adding the caption: Keep 'em coming. This shows Osborne's enthusiasm for building a powerhouse team. His reaction has sparked excitement among fans eager for more recruiting wins. Devin Fitzgerald's visit sparks commitment buzz Javian Osborne, a talented running back from Forney, Texas, committed to Notre Dame in May 2025 and has since been a vocal recruiter for the program. On3's Mike Singer and Steve Wiltfong predicted that Devin Fitzgerald, a three-star wide receiver from Phoenix, Arizona, could join Notre Dame's 2026 class. This prediction followed Fitzgerald's official visit to South Bend from June 13-15, 2025. It was a great experience , Fitzgerald told Irish Sports Daily, noting the chance to connect with coaches and players. He recorded 52 catches for 720 yards and nine touchdowns in his junior year at Brophy Prep. Ranked as the No. 81 wide receiver and No. 4 prospect in Arizona by On3, Fitzgerald will announce his college choice on July 5. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like What She Did Mid-Air Left Passengers Speechless medalmerit Learn More Undo If he picks Notre Dame, he'll join a talented receiver group including Bubba Frazier and Dylan Faison. Also Read: Three men charged in shooting that paralyzed aspiring college football star in Brooklyn Park Legacy recruits and Brayden Robinson boost Notre Dame's class The Notre Dame class of 2026 is picking up big-ticket recruits already, including legacy athletes such as Devin Fitzgerald, the son of NFL Hall of Famer Larry Fitzgerald. Other notable acquisitions by the Irish include the four-star linebacker Thomas Davis Jr who is the son of Thomas Davis Sr., who had a 16-year pro career in the NFL. This tendency is an indication of the attraction of Notre Dame to football-oriented families. Another key target, Brayden Robinson, a four-star wide receiver from Red Oak, Texas, visited South Bend alongside Fitzgerald. It was good just getting to meet with actual players , Robinson shared with Irish Sports Daily, praising the tight-knit receiver group. On3 gives Notre Dame a 75.4% chance of landing Robinson, ranked as the No. 54 wide receiver in the 2026 class. With Osborne's leadership and Notre Dame's No. 2-ranked recruiting class per 247Sports, the Irish are building a formidable roster under coach Marcus Freeman, setting high expectations for the future. Game On Season 1 kicks off with Sakshi Malik's inspiring story. Watch Episode 1 here
