An offer of £2,000 compensation by a Cork secondary school student who harassed his business teacher with up to eight telephone calls a day over nine months was accepted at the Cork District Court yesterday. Sentencing in the case was adjourned until next June.
Earlier this year, Karl Hudson (19) Tower Lodge, Blackrock, Cork, pleaded guilty to persistently phoning his business and economics teacher, Mr Patrick O'Shea (54), who is on the staff of Presentation College, Cork.
The intimidation, lasted from Christmas 1999 until the following September. Some 83 calls were traced to Hudson by the Garda between February 17th and April 15th of last year.
Mr O'Shea told the earlier hearing that the calls, made to his home and mobile phone, were often silent but then became abusive and very upsetting. A "vicious" text message was received last January.
"I was terrified. It was a nine month campaign of harassment, terror and fear. I couldn't continue teaching. I was terrified," he said.
Mr O'Shea said he became ill because the nature of the calls was so upsetting. He attended his doctor, received counselling and was forced to take leave from his work.
The court heard that Hudson felt he had been treated unfairly by Mr O'Shea in school reports and took exception to indications that he had been doing poorly.
At yesterday's hearing, Mr Ernest Cantillon, defending, said his client had been expelled from school at the start of his Leaving Certificate year and his family had found it very difficult to place him at another school.
In the interim, he had become gravely ill from meningitis and at one point there were fears for his life.
He was now awaiting his examination results.
Mr Cantillon repeated an earlier apology made in court to Mr O'Shea and said the sum of £2,000 was available by way of compensation.
Payment of this money was being made without prejudice to any future civil case that might be taken.
The money was accepted in court on behalf of Mr O'Shea.
Judge Leo Malone said he would reconsider sentencing next June.
In the meantime, the student's behaviour would be monitored by the Probation Service.