A candidate who ran in the general election in Kerry has been jailed for contempt of court.
Listowel Circuit Court heard an application for attachment and committal was made by solicitors representing Sergeant Melanie Walsh.
They alleged there had been a breach of an interlocutory injunction granted in July by Judge Francis Comerford to Sgt Walsh against local and general election candidate Michelle Keane.
Under the interlocutory injunction, Ms Keane from Knocknagoshel was ordered to remove all online posts made against the Listowel-based sergeant.
The injunction also ordered Michelle Keane and any other party acting in concert with her from making future statements about Sgt Walsh online.
The sergeant’s legal representatives alleged this had been breached most recently by a Facebook post on November 28th.
Judge James O’Donohue gave Ms Keane an opportunity to give an undertaking to remove any social media posts referring to Melanie Walsh and not make any further posts that refer to her or identify her.
He gave both parties an opportunity to discuss this and legal representatives for the plaintiff prepared a suggested wording for the terms of the undertaking.
However, Ms Keane’s position was that she was not in breach of any order and wouldn’t give the undertaking.
Judge James O’Donohue committed her to prison for failing to give the undertaking, therefore finding her in contempt of the court order.
She was remanded to Limerick prison until this Friday, when she is due to appear in court.
Ms Keane can purge, what the judge held to be a contempt of court, at any time before that.
Michelle Keane recorded a message on social media prior to her court appearance in which she said that " if she is arrested for contempt of a court order, that she believes this is false imprisonment on behalf of the State and that she will defend it to the hilt."
