A 61-year-old man who put up posters in his locality naming a publican as an alleged paedophile has been convicted of harassment.
Bernard Clyne from Brighton Cottage, Foxrock, had denied harassing the victim between April 2nd and April 21st, 2003 by putting up the posters.
The jury of five men and seven women at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court found him guilty of harassment after a three day trial in which it heard the defendant say that the English television series, The Bill, had given him the idea to run what he agreed was "a concerted campaign" against the publican.
Judge Katherine Delahunt remanded Clyne on bail for sentence on July 5th and ordered that he does not try communicate with the 61-year-old publican or any member of his family. She also ordered Clyne not to approach any members of staff at his victim's pub nor attend the pub at any time.
He used to be a regular customer at the pub until around Christmas 2002.
Mr Clyne had told the jury he ran the campaign as a favour to a lifelong friend who asked him to get justice for his son who had allegedly been sexually abused by the publican when he was about eight or nine years old. The poster, which read 'Paedophile Perv', named the publican as a child abuser.
"I believed every word in the posters", he said. He also explained that he had opted to put up the posters rather than report the matter to garda& acute;for several reasons.
Mr Clyne had denied in cross-examination by prosecuting counsel that he had run the campaign because he had been barred from his victim's pub for singing.
"Everyone was amazed when I sang funny songs and that. People gets excited when there is football on and they sing Ole' Ole' and things like that. I was not the only one," said Mr Clyne, who the court heard, is a Manchester United fan.
The son of his friend who was allegedly abused by the publican told the jury he told his father about the alleged abuse near Christmas 2002 when the older man was dying of a terminal illness. He had tried to tell his father at the time but he had refused to believe him.
"He bashed me," the now 23-year-old man told the jury. He said relations between his father and him deteriorated from that time and they were only reconciled after he had the conversation with him in December 2002 and his father apologised for not believing him before.
Mr Clyne said his friend asked him "as a favour to ensure his son got justice" and he promised he would do that. His friend gave him all the details of the alleged abuse and he promised he would do his best "to ensure justice."
His friend died in March 2003. Mr Clyne began the poster campaign shortly thereafter.
The publican told the jury that he is a grandfather and was extremely distressed by the campaign. "I still get upset when I see the posters," he told the jury after unfurling and holding them up as exhibits in court.