Is writing RAT in a book of condolences a crime?

BattleCorp

Don't get me wrong, I think it's an absolutely dispicable thing to do but is it a crime to write the word RAT in a book of condolences?

https://www.independent.ie/irish-news/courts/man-charged-with-writing-rat-on-book-of-condolence-for-garda-colm-horkan-39305481.html

Tig98

It's bring treated as criminal damage. I think they're completely right to treat it as a crime

FitzElla

BattleCorp wrote: »

Don't get me wrong, I think it's an absolutely dispicable thing to do but is it a crime to write the word RAT in a book of condolences?

https://www.independent.ie/irish-news/courts/man-charged-with-writing-rat-on-book-of-condolence-for-garda-colm-horkan-39305481.html

Criminal Damage Act, 1991

“to damage” includes—

(a) in relation to property other than data (but including a storage medium in which data are kept), to destroy, deface, dismantle or, whether temporarily or otherwise, render inoperable or unfit for use or prevent or impair the operation of

I would say yes.

hullaballoo

Moderator: Please be aware this is the Legal Discussion forum and the charter requires discussion to be of a legal nature.

You must engage in discussion of the law, which rarely involves posting pictures of people.

I have deleted a number of posts.

blackwhite

From the reporting of this - it would appear that he wrote this on the cover of the book which is likely to make it easier to demonstrate it was an attempt to deface the book.

John Hutton

blackwhite wrote: »

From the reporting of this - it would appear that he wrote this on the cover of the book which is likely to make it easier to demonstrate it was an attempt to deface the book.

I wonder if he had neatly written "I did not like this man, he was a rat" in the book if it would still be a crime?

In the office one time someone wrote something offensive, but not vulgar, in a birthday card. Should we have called the cops rather than HR?

Peregrinus

You could have done, I think. By writing an offensive comment in the greeting card they rendered it unfit for use - you could hardly give the intended recipient a greeting card containing offensive comments. But the guards would likely have taken the view that the economic value of the greeting card, the relative ease of replacing this and the context in which the offence occurred all combined to make this an offence in which a prosecution was not in the public interest. So your instinct to treat it as a HR matter was a sound one.

Different considerations apply here, I think.

Damian F

This Jason Hennessy chap is a good example of why we need 3 strikes and your out in Ireland.