Courts

Farmer suing Fine Gael Senator denies grabbing him by throat during incident

Breen White, from Castleblayney, suing John McGahon over incident outside Rum House pub in Dundalk, Co Louth, in the early hours of June 16th, 2018

Breen White, from Castleblayney, Co Monaghan, leaving the Four Courts on Tuesday. Photograph: Collins Courts
Breen White, from Castleblayney, Co Monaghan, leaving the Four Courts on Tuesday. Photograph: Collins Courts
Wed Jun 26 2024 - 18:16

A man who claims he was assaulted by a man who since became a Fine Gael Senator has denied in the High Court that he carried out assaults during the altercation.

Breen White, from Castleblayney, Co Monaghan, is suing John McGahon over the incident outside the Rum House pub in Dundalk, Co Louth, at about 3am on June 16th, 2018.

Mr McGahon, of Faughart Gardens, Dundalk, was cleared by a Circuit Criminal Court jury in 2022 after pleading not guilty to assault causing harm to Mr White in the incident.

In his High Court civil action, Mr White is seeking damages for assault and battery. Mr McGahon denies the claims and says he was attacked by Mr White.

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Mr White, a farmer, had been out celebrating a win by his horse Total Demolition at Fairyhouse that day when, he claims, the incident was sparked by Mr McGahon putting his arm around Mr White’s wife Linda on leaving the pub.

He claims words were exchanged and he told Mr McGahon to leave her alone, but he said Mr McGahon first grabbed his arm outside the pub and there followed further words. He said Mr McGahon’s friends tried to hold the politician back but they both ended up on the ground, where he was allegedly punched in the head by Mr McGahon a number of times.

Under cross-examination by Hugh Hartnett SC, Mr White denied Mr McGahon had “in a jocular way” put his arm around his wife’s shoulders. He said it was not her shoulders.

He also denied counsel’s suggestion that Mr McGahon “offered his hand to suggest no offence was meant” when outside the pub.

He denied he pushed Mr McGahon on to the street, kicked at him or grabbed him by the throat during the incident. He did not accept that CCTV shown in court showed he had done these things.

In relation to the footage which Mr Hartnett said showed him grabbing Mr McGahon’s throat, he denied this was so and that he had his hand on Mr McGahon’s right shoulder. This happened when Mr McGahon first came at him to try to punch him, he said.

He denied the video showed him, at one point, “in attack mode”. He said he was trying to get his wife away from the group on the street. He denied he pulled Mr McGahon’s jumper in the incident.

Senator John McGahon outside court on Tuesday. Photograph: Collins Courts
Senator John McGahon outside court on Tuesday. Photograph: Collins Courts

The jury sent a question to the judge asking wehther it occurred to Mr White at any stage to walk away, given that his son arrived to take him home 10 seconds before the incident ended.

In reply, Mr White said his brother was stabbed to death in New York in 1996 by a man who had been ejected from a bar they were in. Outside the bar, the man called on his brother to fight and as he walked away, the perpetrator returned with a knife and stabbed him 13 times, he said.

Asked then by Mr Hartnett had he not seen his son who had arrived outside the Rum House, Mr White said he had not.

He also denied he was at one stage on top of Mr McGahon, and said they had both fallen to the ground at the same time.

He disagreed he was “like a boxer coming out of a corner” at one point in the incident.

He disagreed with counsel when asked whether he considered himself “unlucky in pubs”. He said some 20 years ago a man had thrown a glass at him in another pub and that the man had been prosecuted, but that the trial had collapsed within an hour.

Mr Hartnett put it to Mr White that the first time he said Mr McGahon used the expression “I run this town” was during this trial. Counsel said he had never said it during the criminal trial or at any other time.

Mr White replied that Mr McGahon said “an awful lot more things” on the night, and he “never forgot” that expression.

He denied he had picked up the expression from another case in Kerry when a TD said that. He said he did not know that case.

Part-time minibus driver Leonard Gannon, whose vehicle was parked beside the pub on the night, said he took very little notice of the “handbags” that were going on until he saw one man on top of another on the ground “thumping down on him”. He did not see the other man fight back.

The plaintiff’s case has ended and the defence is due to begin on Thursday.