Man dropped bike with child on back so he could commit assault

A man who dropped his bike with his two-year-old son strapped to a child’s seat on the back, so he could assault another man by smashing his head through a window, has been given a fully suspended prison sentence.

James Bannon (45), with an address in Cornacusk, Streete, County Westmeath, appeared before Roscommon Circuit Court, charged with assault causing harm, criminal damage and endangerment of his son.

The case was initially returned for trial at Castlerea District Court on July 21, 2023. At Roscommon Circuit Court in June 2024, it was indicated a jury would be required. On March 18 of this year, prior to the empanelment of a jury, Mr Bannon pleaded guilty.

Giving evidence to Seán O’Quigley, BL, prosecuting, Garda Patrick Higgins said that, at 10.25am on November 14, 2022, gardaí received a call about a public order incident outside a barbershop at Main Street, Castlerea.

Gda Higgins and a colleague attended the scene and observed the window of the barbershop had been broken. CCTV footage showed Mr Bannon with his bike, which had his son on the rear. Mr Bannon was in conversation with another man when the injured party exited a dentist’s surgery, speaking on his mobile phone.

Mr Bannon is then seen cycling his bike towards the injured party, with his son still in the seat on the rear. The accused is seen cycling into the injured party before headbutting him.

The bike falls to the ground, with the young child still on the back, and a scuffle ensues. Mr Bannon is seen kicking the injured party before getting him in a headlock and backing into the window of the barbershop, which the victim’s head hit.

Mr Bannon was arrested on November 21, 2022 and interviewed once. He confirmed it was him in the CCTV footage, but had a different version of events.

He told gardaí the injured party was the aggressor and that he had kicked his bike. He said he kicked the injured party because he believed him to be holding a weapon and was trying to kick it out of his hand.

He apologised for breaking the window but accepted no responsibility for the assault, the court heard. The injured party had a laceration to his head as a result of going through the window.

The cost incurred to replace the window was €850 including vat, plus €873.95 including VAT for a temporary fix pending a complete fix.

Mr Bannon, who has a total of 10 previous convictions, was representing himself and told the court he remembers events “slightly differently”.

He said he’s currently seeing a psychiatrist. He had sole custody of the child – who did not suffer any injury as a result of the fall.

He came to court with a total of €1,285 in his pocket and a willingness to come up with the outstanding balance to repay the owner of the barbershop.

Judge Kenneth Connolly noted that Mr Bannon came before the court with 10 previous convictions, the last in 2013.

“He appears to be of perfectly good record from 2013 to 2023, when this incident occurred, and has come to no subsequent adverse garda notice,” he said.

There was a “level of violence” involved, he noted, and “it’s very clear he was the aggressor”. The attack also seemed to be “unprovoked and somewhat instantly premeditated”.

Judge Connolly accepted the criminal damage was recklessness, as was the endangerment, where “he seems to have forgotten the child was on the back of the bicycle”.

In mitigation, he noted a plea of guilty, but said it was “not at all an early plea” and that it was “very fortunate he decided to take the course he did because the CCTV footage, in my mind, is irrefutable and it would have taken a jury minutes to convict him”.

For the assault, he imposed a 22-month prison sentence. He added 15 months for the criminal damage and 14 months for endangerment. He directed the sentences to run concurrently and then suspended the entirety of the sentence, subject to a number of conditions including that he pay the balance owed to the owner of the barbershop within nine months.