Trial of Galway man charged with threats to kill adjourned

A Circuit Court judge has adjourned the trial of a Galway man charged with threatening to kill his neighbour, and has discharged the jury.

David Corbett (48), of St Clerans, Craughwell, Co Galway, faced three charges at the Circuit Criminal Court in Castlebar, Co Mayo, relating to alleged threats to three people on dates between January 2012 and February 2014, which led them to believe he intended to kill or cause serious harm to Ian Quinn.

Mr Corbett is facing a further charge of harassing Mr Quinn. He pleaded not guilty to the charges.

Mr Quinn (65), who was in court on Tuesday, is the founder of Galway-based medical devices company, Creganna.

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The trial began at a special sitting in Castlebar on November 27th, but no evidence was heard over five days while legal argument ensued.

Judge Martina Baxter told the 11-person jury on Tuesday, the sixth day of the trial, that she was discharging them as a result of "various matters arising" over the past week.

She told the jury that the trial was now expected to take much longer than the estimated three weeks, and in the light of this she would not delay the jury for any longer.

She excused the panel from jury duty for the next six years as a gesture of appreciation for their attendance over the past six days.

The charges which Mr Corbett has pleaded not guilty to all relate to the Non-Fatal Offences Against the Person Act, 1997.

The first charge relates to an alleged threat made by Mr Corbett against Mr Quinn to Kevin Callanan in Craughwell, Co Galway, between January 1st and February 28th, 2014.

The second charge relates to an alleged threat made by Mr Corbett against Mr Quinn to Gerard Daniels in Craughwell between January 1st and December 31st, 2012.

A third charge relates to an alleged threat by Mr Corbett against Mr Quinn to Jody Daniels between January 1st and January 31st, 2013, at a location in Co Galway.

Another charge relates to Section 10 of the Non-Fatal Offences Against the Person Act, 1997. It alleges Mr Corbett harassed Mr Quinn at various locations in Galway between March 10th, 2012 and July 31st, 2015.

Mr Quinn purchased the Co Galway property of St Clerans, formerly the home of film director John Huston, and subsequently US chat show host Merv Griffin, in 2012.

The case has been listed for mention at Galway Circuit Court on Friday.