A jury of eight women and four men have found a community garda not guilty of striking three "Reclaim the Streets" protesters with his baton two years ago.
Garda Donal Corcoran of Mountjoy Garda Station was unanimously found not guilty of all three counts of assault causing harm to Oisin Breen, Butterfield Park, Rathfarnham, Katie Crean, New Cabra Road, Dublin 7 and Brian Hayden, Knockmore Grove, Tallaght on May 6th, 2002. d
Garda Donal Corcoran, of Mountjoy Garda Station, was today found not guilty of assaulting three 'Reclaim the Streets' protesters
His family and friends broke down in tears as the unanimous verdict of the jury was delivered in Dublin Circuit Criminal Court following deliberations which lasted two-and-a-half hours.
Gda Corcoran remained composed while the jury's verdict was recorded.
He thanked his counsel, Mr Patrick J McCarthy SC (with Mr Breffini Gordon BL) and his solicitor before leaving court after he was discharged by Judge Yvonne Murphy.
Gda Corcoran agreed in evidence last Friday, he had struck Mr Hayden on the head with his baton and used excessive force in dealing with him.
He said it was his intention to hit his outstretched arm in order to protect his garda colleague whom he believed Mr Hayden was about to punch.
He denied striking Ms Crean and Mr Breen and told the jury he knew people referred to him as 'Robocop' and 'Terminator'.
Judge Murphy, in her charge to the jury, said there were two main principal rights surrounding the trial: a citizen's right to protest or march regardless of their point of view and a garda's right to do his or her job.
She said this was not a contest between Mr Hayden, Ms Crean and Mr Breen against Gda Corcoran; rather, it was a case brought by the State against him and these three people were merely witnesses in the trial.
She further advised the jury to be impartial in its considerations.
Mr McCarthy had urged the jury in his closing submission to consider the law of assault which he said allowed for assault when it occurred because of self defence.
He recalled that Gda Corcoran had told the jury in evidence he was acting in defence of a colleague when he struck Mr Hayden.
He advised the jury it must decide if there was a reasonable possibility that in Gda Corcoran's state of mind at the time his actions were justifiable.
He told the jury they should put themselves "in the mind of the alleged assailant" to determine if Gda Corcoran was right in doing what he did.
Earlier, Mr Sean Gillane BL (with Mr Tom O'Connell SC) said, in his closing statement for the prosecution, there were three trials that need to be considered in this case.
He said everyone was in agreement that Mr Hayden was struck by Gda Corcoran but the question was why?
Mr Gillane said Gda Corcoran claimed it was in defence of a colleague and that Mr Hayden was acting in an aggressive manner towards gardai.
He suggested that Mr Hayden was plucked from the crowd and struck from behind and deliberately so.
"Mr Hayden did not even so much as lay an eye ball on the garda who struck him," he said.