Clare County Council is seeking to evict a convicted killer of a school-teacher from a Council house in Ennis.
On the 26th of December 2009, Lissycasey school-teacher, 26-year-old Brian Casey died after being victim to what Mr Justice Liam McKenchie described as an “utterly unprovoked, cowardly, brutal and grossly violent” assault by 36-year-old Harry Dinan and his nephew, 29-year-old Kevin Dinan on the man.
Mr Justice McKenchie said that Mr Casey was a “totally innocent’’ bystander in the unprovoked assault and was caught off guard by a severe ‘haymaker’ punch inflicted by Harry Dinan.
The blow broke Mr Casey’s jaw in two places and the Lissycasey man fractured his skull on impact with the ground. The court heard Kevin Dinan punched Mr Casey repeatedly to the face and head while he lay on the ground. He never regained consciousness and died two days later.
Harry Dinan was jailed for seven years after pleading guilty to manslaughter and was released from prison in November 2015.
Mr Dinan’s parents died within two months of each other in late 2016 and Mr Dinan remains at the Dinan Council owned property at Waterpark Heights, Ennis in spite of a Council request on him to vacate the property.
Now after Mr Dinan’s refusal to leave, the Council has gone to Ennis District Court in a bid to evict him.
Solicitor for the Council, Marina Keane told Judge Patrick Durcan that in order for a relative to remain in a Council property after a death, they must have been living in the property for two years prior to the death.
She said that this is clearly not the case as Mr Dinan was released from prison in November 2015.
Ms Keane also told the court that Mr Dinan told his sister that he was moving into the home at Waterpark Heights in October 2016 to act as a carer for his father who died one month later.
Solicitor for Mr Dinan, Tara Godfrey said that she was objecting to this evidence as Mr Dinan’s sister wasn’t in court.
Ms Keane said that Mr Dinan is unlawfully at the property pointing out that there is considerable pressure on the Council housing list.
Ms Keane said that Mr Dinan’s parents were the only people living at the property and that Mr Dinan was not declared living at the property for rent assessment at any stage.
Ms Keane said that Mr Dinan is eligible for social housing support, but the Council is not in a position to allocate a house to him currently.
Ms Keane said that Ms Godfrey in a submission has stated that Mr Dinan has stated that he has been living at the property since 2004 and was receiving social welfare using that address and living at that address with his parents.
However, Ms Keane said that Mr Dinan met with a Council social-worker in December and said that he resided in Clarecastle from 2001 to 2006 until his relationship ended.
Ms Godfrey told Judge Durcan that Mr Dinan remained in prison from 2009 until his 2015 release and was sentenced for ‘unlawful death’.
Judge Durcan said that he wanted to see the address that appeared on Mr Dinan’s charge sheet where he was first chaged in relation to the unlawful death case and adjourned the case to Ennis District Court tomorrow (Wednesday).
