Andrew Carey
andrew@limerickpost.ie
INDEPENDENT TD Mick Wallace has been arrested in Dublin this Wednesday morning over non payment of a court fine and he is currently being held at Limerick Prison.
The Wexford TD was previously convicted and fined for breaching the grounds of Shannon airport during a protest last year.
As the €2,000 fine remained outstanding this week, a penal warrant issued for the arrest of the outspoken TD and he was taken into custody at Clontarf garda station this Wednesday morning.
Mr Wallace, who was dressed in his usual pink shirt, was arrested last year during a protest over US authorities using Shannon as a stopover for missions to the Middle East.
Ennis Court gave Mr Wallace until July to pay the fine.
Dublin TD Clare Daly, who was also involved in the protest at Shannon Airport, received a similar fine.
At the time of the court appearance, Mr Wallace said that their decision to go over the fence was not to break the law, “but to help keep the peace”.
He said that they did not accept the judge’s decision “and under no circumstances will we pay the fines. We realise this may mean serving time in prison. It’s not something we’d look forward to, but if it happens, so be it”.
Upon arrival, Mr Wallace will be processed through the prisoner system at the Mulgrave Street jail and his duration there will depend on the nature of the offence and the length of time to be served for defaulting on the payment of the fine, the population figures at the prison and any orders that may be granted giving him temporary release.
It is understood that these decisions will be made by the Governor or senior prison officials.
The length of time that the Wexford TD will stay in custody is as yet unclear as Limerick Prison is currently running 105 per cent of its bed capacity according to the latest prison population figures.
