Farmer who shot Traveller dead jailed for six years
A 61-year-old Mayo farmer has been sentenced to six years for the manslaughter of a Traveller father of 11 in October 2004.
Before passing sentence today at the Central Criminal Court Mr Justice Paul Carney said it was the "most difficult sentencing matter I’ve had to deal with in 14 years in this court".
Mr Padraic Nally (aged 61), of Funshinagh, Cross, Mayo, had pleaded not guilty to the murder of John Ward (aged 42).
Last July, a jury found Mr Nally not guilty of murder but guilty of manslaughter at the Central Criminal Court sitting in Castlebar, Co. Mayo.
Judge Carney said this was "undoubtedly the most socially divisive case I’ve had to try and the most difficult case I’ve had to sentence".
Before sentencing, the deceased man's widow, Mrs Marie Ward said "I'm lost without my husband" and that she would "never be the same" without him.
She said it was getting "worse day by day" to try and raise 11 children without a husband.
Mrs Ward said her 4-year-old asks "Where's my daddy?" and "When is he coming back?" to which she asked the court "What can I say?".
Mrs Ward said her two eldest sons had "cut their arms" and one of them is on a psychiatric ward.
She added that she is suffering from depression and is receiving medication.
After the sentence was handed down Mrs Ward said outside the court: "I’m very disappointed that my husband’s life is not worth more than six years".
A brother-in-law of the deceased, Mr Martin Reilly told the awaiting media that he believed a "man’s life is worth more than six years".
"It’s something we’ll never get back, a loving husband, a loving father and a loving man in every way".
He said: "I have no feelings towards him", referring to Mr Nally.
Mr Reilly said he believed "100 per cent" that the community was against the Travellers and that the trial held in July should not have been in Mayo.
"I thought the court should have been held in Dublin", he added.
Before sentencing, Sgt James Carroll of Ballinrobe Garda station told prosecuting barrister, Mr Paul O’Higgins SC that John Ward and his son Thomas had gone to Padraic Nally's farmhouse near the village of Cross just after lunch time on October 14.
It was heard in court that Thomas Ward asked Mr Nally if his white Nissan car was for sale.
John Ward was seen by Mr Nally entering his home by the back door.
The farmer got his loaded shotgun from a hay shed and the Traveller was shot in the hip and hand as he emerged from the house.
In a violent struggle, which followed, Ward was hit 20 times with a thick piece of ash.
As he made his way from the farmyard, Nally returned to the hay shed, reloaded and followed Ward down the road.
John Ward was shot a second time and died at the scene. Padraic Nally pulled his body across the road and put it into a field.
Sgt Carroll told Mr O’Higgins SC that Mr Nally is a bachelor who lives alone and has never come to the attention of the gardaí before this incident.
He said Mr Nally is a small farmer who is "well regarded by his friends and neighbours in the Funshinagh and the surrounding area".
Sgt Carroll agreed with defence barrister Mr Brendan Grehan SC, that Mr Nally had been living in fear after being robbed and unwelcome strangers had come to his house.
Sgt Carroll agreed with Mr Grehan SC that Mr Nally was "out of his mind with fear" on the day of the fatal shooting.
The court heard that Mr Nally used to record the registration numbers of cars coming to his farmhouse and would throw a bucket of water on soil at his gate in order to record footprints or tyre prints of anyone who would call while he was not at home.
Mr Nally’s next door neighbour, Mr Michael Varley told defence barrister Mr Michael Bowman BL that he has known Mr Nally "all his life".
He said Mr Nally’s door was "always open to his neighbours".
Mr Varley said he noticed a change in Mr Nally from 2003 after he had been broken into and again in February 2004.
From then on, he said, Mr Nally wouldn’t stay long away from his farm and became pre-occupied with maintaining a presence at his farm.
Psychologist Dr John P. Bogue told the court that after he assessed Mr Nally he concluded that he was "quite a sincere and forthcoming man".
He said Mr Nally had been suffering from stress in the weeks before the fatal shooting.
"He was pre-occupied with intruders coming to his farm", Dr Bogue said.
He said Mr Nally was "coping quite poorly" with the stress. Dr Bogue said Mr Nally had entertained thoughts of self-harm before the incident.
After assessing Mr Nally on November 7 last, Dr Bogue said he was "remorseful" about the fatal shooting and he knew it was wrong and he wished it had not happened.
However Mr Nally told Dr Bogue that he "felt compelled to act in the way he did".
Before sentencing, Mr Grehan SC told Mr Justice Carney that Mr Nally had "up to this lived a blameless life" for nearly 62 years.
Mr Grehan said: "it was an incident in which two separate worlds collided outside his back door".
The defence barrister said he wished to express his client's "sorrow" to the family of Mr Ward.
Mr Grehan urged the court to "suspend all or most of any sentence" that would be imposed.
Before sentencing Mr Justice Carney told the over-crowded court that Mr Nally was "initially" protecting the inviolability of his home but this changed after he got the upper hand in the altercation.
Judge Carney said that as the deceased was retreating, Mr Nally took out three further cartridges and loaded the shotgun.
He said Mr Ward was "stooped" over at the time Mr Nally fatally shot him.
Mr Justice Carney said he did not take into account when sentencing any of the "disturbing letters" sent by other people to Mrs Ward, which said her son, Thomas should be killed as well.
After imposing sentence on Mr Nally, Judge Carney told Mr Grehan SC that he would hear an application for leave to appeal on December 5.
