A Dublin based Garda who harassed his sergeant through emails and Facebook has been committed to the Central Mental Hospital.
Donal Maguire, who is from Bundoran in Co. Donegal, was found not guilty by reason of insanity earlier this month.
The 40-year-old has since been assessed by a psychiatrist who has recommended he receive more treatment at the special facility.
The harassment began in February 2012 when Donal Maguire sent his superior officer a ValentineÂ’s card.
They were both married and she assumed it was a prank but became concerned when he started sending her emails through the Garda PULSE system.
His access to PULSE was eventually revoked and despite numerous warnings to leave her alone, he kept trying to contact her until she decided to make a formal complaint after he sent her a Facebook friend request.
Two psychiatrists gave evidence during his short trial and both agreed he met the criteria for the special verdict.
The jury heard he was diagnosed with a form of dementia, with symptoms including erotomania -– a delusion in which a person believes someone usually of a higher social status is in love with them.
The disorder also meant that he was increasingly inappropriate, had a loss of empathy, was unable to understand the impact of his behaviour and lacked judgement.
The jury returned with the unanimous verdict of NOT guilty by reason of insanity after less than an hour of deliberations.
Our Courts Correspondent Frank Greaney reports:
