Gardaí handcuffed a man who resisted arrest during a late night investigation at a house outside Cork city, but the man still attempted to assault officers and run away.

Inspector John Deasy said the accused, Stephen McCarthy, aged 24, of Spring Lane halting site, Blackpool, did manage to get away from gardaí on the night, but they caught up with him and arrested him.

McCarthy pleaded guilty to a charge of obstructing Garda Richard Casey and failing to give his name and address to gardaí on the night.

Insp Deasy said the owner of a house at Ballyphillip, White’s Cross, became concerned at 2.30am on the morning of April 12 last year when a car with its lights off drove into the yard in front of the house.

The householder rang the gardaí and invited them into his house when they arrived that morning.

Frank Buttimer, solicitor, said McCarthy had permission from the man’s daughter to be present in the house that night.

Insp Deasy said gardaí tried to talk to him but found that he would not answer their questions and he would not tell them his name.

The guards were also investigating a hit and run car accident that had occurred a short time earlier, Insp Deasy said.

As the defendant tried to assault gardaí, Garda Karen Burke used her incapacitant spray and handcuffed the defendant, but he managed to escape. Gardaí found him a short time later nearby.

McCarthy had 59 previous convictions, including eight for assault and others for theft and possession of knives.

Mr Buttimer said the 24-year-old was in bed in the house with the permission of his friend’s girlfriend and he was woken by gardaí and became confused as he had been out cold.

“He misread the situation and reacted quite badly. He had to be subdued and taken to the garda station. He accepts the legitimacy of the visit to the house by the gardaí. He should not have done what he did,” Mr Buttimer said.

The solicitor submitted that efforts being made by the accused to deal with his drink problem would ultimately benefit him and benefit society rather than having to serve a jail term.

Judge Aingil Ní Chondúin said, “Normally I would just whack him with fines and jail but I will test his mettle and go the probation route.”

The judge asked for a probation report on the accused in two months and said she would consider getting him to do a community service order.

This article first appeared in the Evening Echo