Pensioner cleared by a jury of 'harassing' Mayo teenage girls

A JURY at the Circuit Criminal Court in Castlebar today found a 68-year-old man not guilty of individually harassing four teenage girls in a Mayo town various dates in July and August last year.

During the course of the trial over the last three days, mobile phone footage taken by the girls of a man they believed to be committing a lewd act in their presence was shown to the court.

Medical evidence that the accused has a neurological condition which causes his left hand to shake was heard by the court yesterday.

In his closing submission to the jury today (Friday) defence counsel Brendan McDonagh B.L. said the condition is embarrassing for the accused and he chooses to deal with the problem by putting his left hand in his pocket.

Mr. McDonagh claimed that the complainants had "misinterpreted a totally innocent situation."

Afer the jury returned a not guilty verdict on all four charges Judge Rory MacCabe said he was entitled to make an order that over the next ten years the accused makes no attempt to approach any of the complainants and not approach within a mile of their school or workplace.

The judge commended the four girls for the steps they had taken stating they are a credit to their parents and had 'acted responsibly'.

The accused was charged under Section 10 of the Non-Fatal Offences Against the Person Act, 1997.