Magheralin man, who court heard called his female neighbour vile names while under a restraining order, told he faces jail if he does it again
A 56-year-old man, who breached a restraining order by shouting vile names at his neighbour, has been told he will go to jail if he is before the court again.
Rodney Gordon Hanna, aged 56, from Florence Ville, Magheralin, appeared in the dock at Craigavon Magistrates Court on Wednesday.
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District Judge Michael Ranaghan said there appeared to a bit of “prevarication” in the Pre-Sentence Report whether Hanna admits the offence or not.
Hanna’s lawyer said his client accepts the offence but added “it’s a question of intent”. “You will note from his record he has similar entries with the same injured party. He had provided Ring doorbell footage of him talking to himself in an expletive-laden fashion while the injured party was out the back.”
A Prosecutor told the court that on October 9 last year at 11.30am police attended an address at Magheralin where the victim revealed that, after a harassment court case which finished on September 29 last year, she was granted a restraining order against her neighbour – the defendant.
The victim said Hanna had breached this on a number of occasions, specifically on October 2, 2023, at quarter past midnight where she overheard Hanna calling her vile names while using his phone. She contacted police asking them to remind Hanna of the restraining order.
She reported on October 9 at approximately midnight the defendant was "out in his backyard again and shouting things like ‘I have to live next to this oul b**tard’”.
"This caused the injured party distress, worry, anxiety and fear. She contacted police again as he had previously been given the warning. The defendant was interviewed and denied he breached the order,” said the Prosecutor, adding Hanna claimed to suffer from PTSD.
The Prosecutor added that Hanna claimed that on October 2 he was on a call to a friend in Scotland in his back garden and he did not refer to injured party or call her offensive names. She said there is an application for an extension of the restraining order.
District Judge Ranaghan said Hanna is in breach of one suspended sentence.
Hanna’s lawyer said his client had a "traumatic upbringing” as mentioned in the Pre-Sentence Report and has long standing issues with alcohol and PTSD. Alcohol was a feature on both occasions in this case. He also said that Hanna no longer lives at that property in Magheralin.
"This offence was reckless rather than deliberate,” said the lawyer and asked that the judge not enact the suspended sentence given that Hanna is no longer living in the area.
District Judge Ranaghan said: “This is not the easiest sentencing exercise Mr Hanna. The thing that perhaps saves you, to a degree, is the fact that you are not now living near this person. Breach of any court order is a very significant matter. I have no doubt your actions were very distressing, disturbing and worrying for your victim.”
The judge imposed a Probation Supervision for 18 months on Hanna during which time he must comply with what Probation wants him to do. He added that if he breaches it he will be jailed for seven months. He also put in place a Restraining Order of two and a half years.