Serious convictions show how Kerry takes turn for the worse

Judging by the number of very serious criminal trials that have resulted in convictions recently, you’d be forgiven for thinking that things have taken a very serious turn in the wrong direction in Kerry.

It hardly needs saying, but Kerry is no longer that predominantly peaceful outpost on the South-West coastline, immune from the sort of notorious criminality that was once mainly associated with big cities like Dublin, Cork and Limerick. Unfortunately, Kerry has moved closer to the centre when it comes to the broadest range of lawlessness.

There’s been the appalling murder of Tom Dooley at Rath Cemetery, Tralee, in October 2022. Six people have been convicted in relation to that murder and will be serving time behind bars for many, many years to come as a consequence.

Also in 2022 Tralee man Joe Brosnan was stabbed to death and now his neighbour Patrick Murphy is also serving a life sentence for his murder.

This week, we saw how Billy Burns convicted of the murder of his own mother, Miriam, at her home in Killarney. His sentencing tomorrow(Friday) will be a purely technical matter, as he too will receive the mandatory life term in jail having been found guilty of murder.

Also this week, Scartaglen man Fergus O’Connor was handed the mandatory life sentence for the murder of his brother, Paudie O’Connor.

Meanwhile, former Tralee businessman Nathan McDonnell is banged up for 12 years for his involvement in the largest importation of the illegal drug, crystal meth, to Ireland.

And seven men charged with conspiring to import a massive quantity of cocaine into Ireland through Kerry have pleaded guilty, their sentences still to be handed down.

Further, a number of other high-profile cases are still before the courts.

And then there’s the unsolved murder and shocking dismemberment last March of Kenmare farmer Michael Gaine, a crime about which the public is entitled to have real concerns given the lack of visible progress so far.

There should be no surprise if Kerry people are decidedly edgy about the way things seem to be going in their part of the country right now.

One cannot accept what’s happening as a by-product of modern life, and shrug it off. That just risks normalising a scale of crime that should never be seen as anything but unacceptable.

A major issue is the increase in violence, and the greatest viciousness of that violence when it does occur.

We need more gardaí to protect us. That’s without question.

But, also without question, is the fact that gardaí can’t be everywhere.

People have to police their own behaviour; people intent on violence need to know that it can end in serious injury and death, lives ruined and they spending their lives behind bars.