A retired garda who was repeatedly kicked in the tes- ticles by a man he was trying to arrest has been awarded almost €80,000 compensation in the High Court.
Mr Justice Bernard Barton said Joseph Treacy, who lives in Co Tipperary, had been the victim of three violent assaults between 2004 and 2007.
The former officer, of Cashel Garda Station at the time, had told the court that on one occasion he had so much blood and saliva spat on him by another man he had been trying to arrest that his uniform had to be burned.
He had told Judge Barton that in November 2007 he was kicked in the testicles when he arrested a man who had stolen a car from a woman after threatening her with a knife.
He and a colleague had struggled to arrest the man, who was on a "binge of heroin injections".
As he dragged and lifted him up to the patrol car, he was repeatedly kicked between his legs and in his groin.
Father-of-two Mr Treacy told his barrister, Aidan Walsh, that he felt excruciating pain.
The man had then managed to kick him in the face, back and right shoulder.
The court heard Mr Treacy was off work for more than a year following the incident and had returned to light duties.
He claimed he suffered post-traumatic stress disorder and had voluntarily retired two years ago as he did not feel mentally fit to go back to full duty.
Judge Barton heard that the day before the kicking incident, Mr Treacy and a colleague had tried to arrest another man, who was also high on drugs and had been involved in a scuffle in Cahir, when he spat blood in his eyes, nose and mouth.
Mr Walsh said Mr Treacy carried on with his duties that night and had managed to arrest the man and put him in the patrol car, when blood was spat on his face again.
burned
Mr Treacy told the court his face, jacket and shirt had been saturated with blood which he washed off his face on returning to Cashel Garda Station. His wife had his uniform burned the next morning.
He claimed he had also suffered injuries in 2004 after he was kicked and punched in his face and body by another man.
The State alleged that Mr Treacy had retired on a purely voluntary basis once he had reached 30 years of service.
Judge Barton said he accepted the State's position regarding Mr Treacy's retirement.
He awarded him €60,000 damages and €19,822 regarding his fees and expenses, a total of €79,822.