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A retired school teacher is suing her former next-door neighbor, who allegedly sent a defamatory letter to a third party who was allegedly hers, the Superior Court heard.
Olga Clancy claims that she was defamed by Marie Gaughan, a retired nurse, in a letter that allegedly read “I hope you die in hell, you bastard”, and that it was headed with Ms. Clancy’s address and signed “Olga.”
Ms. Clancy claims that the letter, sent in July 2020, was written by Ms. Gaughan with the intention of damaging her good name and reputation.
The parties and their respective families had lived side by side on St Canice’s Road, Glasnevin, Dublin, for some time, until the end of last year when the defendant moved to England, the court heard.
It is also alleged that the defendant engaged in ongoing malicious behavior deliberately calculated to cause annoyance and interfere with Ms. Clancy’s right to peacefully enjoy her home.
Ms Clancy said that she and her family were the subject of an elaborate hoax in 2014, when they were interviewed by the Gardaí about the murder of a man in Ballymun.
This, it is claimed, came after a public notice issued by the gardaí seeking information about the murder was altered and sent to the Harcourt Street garda station.
Details regarding Ms. Clancy’s home address were handwritten on the notice, he says. It is alleged that the letter of the notice also falsely implied that a murderer had concealed a weapon on the property.
She claims that Gardaí believes the notice was sent to cause distress and embarrassment to the Clancy family.
Ms. Clancy also claims that in 2017 she received a threatening letter. The letter noted that one of the property’s bedroom windows was being carefully watched.
In 2012, Ms. Clancy says the Circuit Court awarded her damages and injunctions against Ms. Gaughan and her spouse for interfering with the plaintiff’s property rights.
As a result of the letter and the other incidents, Ms. Clancy has sued Ms. Gaughan for damages for the alleged defamation, annoyance and malicious conduct. The court heard that no defense has been presented on behalf of Ms Gaughan.
As a result, Ms. Clancy’s attorneys have filed a motion seeking judgment against Ms. Gaughan in the absence of a defense to the claim against her.
The dispute came before the Superior Court yesterday when Ms. Clancy’s attorneys sought, but were denied, an order freezing the proceeds from the sale of Ms. Gaughan’s former home..
The court heard that Ms Gaughan put the house on the market last year and is believed to have moved to the UK.
Ms Clancy’s attorneys said she fears the defendant is trying to put her assets out of her reach should she obtain damages against Ms Gaughan.
The action will return to court in May.
Online editors
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