An Armagh man has been convicted in his absence of assaulting two police officers and failing to provide a specimen after being found unfit to drive, following a contested hearing at Armagh Magistrates’ Court, sitting in Newry, on Tuesday.
Tiernan Donnelly, of Navan Street, Armagh, faced two charges of assault on police, driving when unfit through drink or drugs, using a motor vehicle without insurance, and failing to provide a specimen.
The 25-year-old had previously pleaded guilty to all matters except the police assaults and the fail-to-provide charge, which proceeded to contest on Tuesday.
However, Donnelly did not attend the hearing, despite knowing he was required to be present.
Defence barrister Conor Coulter told the court he had no explanation for his client’s absence, noting he had consulted with Donnelly at the courthouse the previous week.
Three police officers attended to give evidence and all adopted their statements as evidence. Outlining the background, the prosecutor said Donnelly had initially been “relatively compliant” after being arrested on the Newry Road, Crossmaglen, on August 30, 2025.
“He clearly gets very agitated,” the prosecutor said. “He basically spends the journey to custody apologising and accepting how foolhardy he was. But whenever they get back to the custody yard, he takes exception to the length of time he considers he is being processed. He veers from relatively compliant to almost hysterical — high-pitched — and he pokes one officer in the eye and kicks out at another.”
When asked if he wished to make any submission on the contested matters, Mr Coulter replied: “Nothing unfortunately, nothing plausible in the absence of the defendant.”
District Judge Natasha Fitzsimons ruled: “It was initially a not guilty to the failure about a specimen when driving unfit. I’m going to convict him of that… And I’m going to convict him of both the assaults on police.”
The court heard Donnelly has no previous record, which the prosecutor described as “unusual… for someone who finds himself in such a situation.”
Judge Fitzsimons imposed an interim disqualification from driving with immediate effect and adjourned the case for one week for sentencing.
