MR Cathal Ryan tried to intervene and stop "this lunacy" when Ms Michelle Rocca was slapping and kicking his then girlfriend, he told the High Court yesterday.
He told Mr Justice Moriarty and a jury that he was awakened in a bedroom by Ms Rocca screaming and yelling a plethora of obscenities at Ms Sarah Linton.
I can only describe it as awakening from a nightmare," said Mr
Ryan.
Ms Rocca (38) is claiming damages for assault against Mr Ryan (37). He is denying the claims and it is submitted that if he did the acts complained of there was provocation.
Yesterday was the fourth day of the hearing.
Ms Rocca claims the assault took place in a bedroom at Blackhall Stud, near Clane, Co Kildare, on March 22nd, 1992, in a bedroom at a party. She claims she was assaulted after she found Mr Ryan lying on a bed with Ms Linton.
Mr Ryan said yesterday he met Ms Linton on February 2nd 1992, in Cashel, Co Tipperary. He was attending a birthday dinner for his father, Dr Tony Ryan. It was family only but then they went to the Cashel Palace Hotel where there was a surprise party for his father, who was with his partner. He met Ms Linton on that occasion.
Ms June Moloney, had "played Cupid and I was very grateful for that. We had the opportunity to go on a quasi-blind date and the romance flourished."
They then met frequently and the romance flared very quickly. For a long time following the break-up with Ms Rocca, he had not been associated with anybody.
"In that regard, it was a very, very special time." He was relatively friendly with Ms Moloney and her husband, Brian.
Mr Ryan's counsel, Mr Garrett Cooney SC said that Ms Rocca claimed he was her fiance at the time of the incident.
Mr Ryan replied: "That is entirely untrue."
To the best of his recollection, the invitation to the party at Blackhall Stud resulted from calls from Ms Moloney to himself personally and directly to Ms Linton.
They accepted and took two separate cars from his home in Kilboy, near Nenagh, Co Tipperary. They arrived at 8.30 to 9.00 p.m. About 20 people were there. It was terribly informal. Most people attending were involved in some way in the equine world.
Ms Moloney had told him by telephone that Ms Rocca had been invited. She suggested Michelle had inveigled an invitation by saying she wanted to bring a present. Ms Moloney felt pressurised to invite her.
He asked if this was wise. Ms Moloney said she had received assurances that Ms Rocca would behave herself.
Mr Ryan said Michelle had arrived at the party just before 10 o'clock. He recalled her coming into the room. She made quite an arrival.
Her dress was more "cocktailish" than informal, so she made quite an entry.
He did not greet her immediately but within the first half hour they exchanged greetings. There was no further conversation, there was nothing to talk about.
Ms Rocca's evidence that during the course of the party he was constantly smiling, talking and laughing across the room was incorrect.
Mr Ryan said he and Ms Linton were with each other. They were very much in love at the time and obviously there was a lot of eye contact. They had mingled with guests and partook of food.
To the best of his recollection he had three bottles of beer and one or two gin-and-tonics.
Earlier Ms Linton had said she was very tired. It was their intention to drive back to Tipperary after the party.
He noticed she was missing. She might have mentioned she was going to lie down. He inquired where she was. Ms Moloney told Mr Ryan said he went upstairs and discovered Ms Linton in a bedroom. She was on the bed nearest the window and was asleep.
She was lying on top of the covers but subsequently went under the covers and was facing the window.
At this time it was 11.30 p.m. to midnight. He inquired if she was OK and she said she wanted to sleep. He lay down beside her.
He was fully clothed except for his jacket and shoes. He had on a shirt and jeans. Ms Linton was fully dressed minus a jacket.
Mr Ryan said that to the best of his recollection Mr David Marshall was in another bed in the room. He fell asleep with Ms Linton beside him against the wall and both facing the window.
Mr Cooney said it had been suggested that he was the worse for drink. Mr Ryan said that was not correct. He had to drive back to Tipperary.
He had not seen anybody entering the bedroom. The next thing that happened could be described as "awaking from a nightmare".
He heard screaming and yelling, and a plethora of abuse at Ms Linton, not at him.
He woke up having heard obscenities and saw Sarah being slapped while she sat upright in bed.
Mr Cooney: "Who was slapping her?"
Mr Ryan: "Michelle."
After that Ms Lint on was dragged from the bed by Ms Rocca and was dragged by the hair. He got out of bed and ran to the centre of the room.
"Sarah was lying pretty much defenceless and being slapped and kicked," he said.
Mr Ryan said he tried to stop "this lunacy" and tried to intervene. He pushed Ms Rocca away with force and she hit the far wall and slid down. She got up again and made a second charge at Ms Linton who was standing in the middle of the room, terrified and screaming.
"I slapped Michell at that stage. I slapped her across the face," he said. He then tried to remove her from the room.
He had to try to push her towards the door. He held her around the back and pushed her out of the door, but he did not throw her out.
She came rushing back in again. Ms Linton was still rigid in the centre of the floor and Ms Rocca was coming back for an even more prolonged attack.
He held her down on the floor and tried to restrain her. He held her by her arms, face down. He yelled at Sarah to leave the room.
After that Michelle still tried to get away. It looked as if she was going to pursue Ms Linton down the corridor. He slapped her in the face again and she seemed to subside. Things then became calm from this nightmare.
He brought Ms Rocca to the bathroom. Her nose was bleeding and he sat her down on the loo. He wet a piece of toilet paper and tried to mop up any bleeding.
He did not attempt to lock her in the toilet.
There was a lot of commotion in the corridor. There was total bedlam around the place. He was told Sarah was very distressed.
He left Michelle unattended. He met Sarah at the side door. He passed through the kitchen and met Ms Moloney, who was quite upset. He certainly was not ordered out by Mr Moloney.
It was about 1.30 a.m. and he put Sarah into his car and they went to Tipperary. Sarah was totally distraught. She was dishevelled and her blouse was torn.
He could not remember if she was bleeding. She was certainly in a very distressed state. She sobbed continually over the 1 1/2 hour journey and she was still inconsolable.
They got home to his house and drank tea. She had a relatively restful night but had the horrors again the next day.
He was devastated that this type of violent attack could be made on this lady. Next day he informed his father what had happened.
Asked by Mr Cooney about his maintenance of Claudia, Mr Ryan said that he had no difficulty with her maintenance.