Two women appear in court charged with offences on Trump’s Doonbeg golf course

TWO CO GALWAY women have appeared in court in connection with an alleged public order offence at Trump International Golf Links in Doonbeg, Co Clare.

Emma O’Grady (41) of Inis Oírr, Co na Gaillaimhe and Áine Ní Threinír (35) of Cuirt Na Tra, Salthill, Co Galway appeared at a special sitting of Ennis District Court on Saturday night.

Theatre artist, Ms O’Grady, and community worker, Ms Ní Threinír, are both charged under Section 6 of the (Criminal Justice) Public Order Act where it is an offence for any person in a public place to use or engage in any threatening, abusive or insulting words or behaviour with intent to provoke a breach of the peace.

Judge Adrian Harris granted legal aid to solicitor Daragh Hassett to represent Ms O’Grady and Ms Ní Threinír.

There was no garda objection to bail, and the judge remanded the two on bail to appear at Kilrush District Court on 20 October.

The judge granted bail on the agreed bail condition that the two stay away from Trump Doonbeg golf resort and must be of good behaviour.

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There was a large gardaí presence at Ennis Courthouse on Saturday night with a small group of protesters and supporters of the accused locked outside the closed gates of the Ennis Courthouse site.

Speaking after the brief court hearing outside the gates of the courthouse on Saturday night, Ms O’Grady said: “At 3.05pm we were arrested by gardaí on the seventh green just as Trump’s helicopters were in the air landing.”

Footage of the incident on social media showed gardaí removing the two from the 7th green in front of a grandstand of Irish Open spectators.

Ms O’Grady said: “We were engaging in a peaceful protest displaying ‘US warplanes out of Shannon’ on our t-shirts and saying that ‘Trump is unwelcome’, calling for a Free Palestine and calling for the US military out of Shannon.”

Ms O’Grady said: “We wanted to highlight that we want the US military out of Shannon and the Irish Government is spending €20 million on security for a private trip this weekend. It is just wrong.”

She said: “We don’t want Trump here and to show Trump that he is not welcome here.”

Ms Ní Threinír said: “In these moments people have to do what they can to say that ‘this isn’t okay’.”