The judge in the Golfgate trial has dismissed the charges against the four accused.
She felt Independent TD Noel Grealish, former Fianna Fáil Senator Donie Cassidy and the two hoteliers were fully compliant with lockdown laws.
🚨BREAKING 🚨
Golfgate is over.
Judge Mary Fahy has just dismissed charges against all four accused.
After doing so, she said:
“Very good people lost very good positions and contracts.”
But she clarified that she hadn’t made her decision based on that.
— Frank Greaney (@FrankGreaney) February 3, 2022
The trial heard evidence of a large partition wall that divided the function room at the Clifden Station House Hotel where the Oireachtas Golf Society marked its 50th anniversary with a post-golf dinner and prize-giving ceremony on August 19th 2020.
81 guests attended the dinner at a time when indoor events were limited to 50 people but Judge Fahy agreed with the defence’s argument that the partition wall created multiple gatherings, which were allowed for, and therefore she decided there was no breach.
In fact, she said she had no doubt that the four men before her did everything to comply with the rules.
In dismissing the charges, she also commented that “very good people lost very good positions and contracts,” before adding that she wanted to make it clear that she hadn’t made her decision based on that.
