Jobless Ashbourne dad tells how he was sent to jail over litter fine

An Ashbourne father who was jailed when he couldn’t pay a fine and costs imposed in the District Court for littering has expressed anger at the way he was treated. The plight of Christy Rooney, who was issued with a fine by Meath County Council when his 12 year-old son, stuffed a plastic bag into a pile of cardboard boxes which had been left at the bottle bank in Ashbourne, made national news last week, when he told his story on Joe Duffy’s 'Liveline’ radio show. He said the whole system was a joke and it was clear on CCTV that it was a 12 year-old boy who had left the bag behind, yet the council still insisted on issuing a fine. However, a spokesperson for Meath County Council said the council does not send people to jail. When a case goes to court, it is taken out of its hands. Mr Rooney said that, in March 2009, he had gone to the recycling facility with his 12 year-old son. “I had a plastic bin full of bottles with me and my son had some extra bottles in a plastic bag,” he said. Unknown to Mr Rooney, when his son finished recycling the bottles, he scrunched up the bag and put it into cardboard boxes, which had been left at the site. Mr Rooney was then issued with a €150 fine, as his car registration had been picked up on CCTV. The unemployed father said he went to Meath County Council and told officials he couldn’t pay the fine in one go and pointed out that it had been the innocent actions of a child. “They wouldn’t listen and just brought me to court,” he said. In Navan Court, he was fined €300 and ordered to pay €1,062 in costs and given two months to pay. “I couldn’t pay it as I’m unemployed and wouldn’t have enough time to pay it in instalments,” he said. Mr Rooney said that when the two months went by, he was taken to Wheatfield Prison, but was released when his wife went round various relatives to come up with the money to pay the fine. Two other callers to 'Liveline’ also spoke of being jailed when unable to pay their fines and costs incurred when taken to court by Meath County Council. An Ashbourne mother, who gave her name as Angela, had her son released from prison when she made a heartfelt plea on the show. Her son had been jailed when he failed to pay the fine and costs. He had been captured on CCTV leaving cardboard boxes behind at the bring bank. A spokesperson for the council said the council pursued people who littered under the Litter Pollution Act and issued fines. She said that it was only when people failed to pay these fines that people are taken to court. She pointed out that, once a case goes to court, it is then out of the council’s control and fines and costs are a matter for the courts. She said that if somebody was issued with a fine, the council would be open to negotiating a phased payment.