Man guilty of assaulting woman
The woman said that Sherlock got out of his van before attacking her.
A man has been found guilty of assaulting a woman after a hearing at Waterford District Court.
Keith Sherlock, of 13 Birch Rise, Birchwood, Waterford, was found guilty of Section 2 assault against a woman.
The 38-year-old father of four appeared before Judge Kevin Staunton on Thursday, January 22.
The court heard from the complainant that on the morning of February 7, 2025, she was walking on the Upper Yellow Road with her partner when she saw Sherlock's work van drive by.
She described the van pulling up beside her and Sherlock and another person getting out of the van.
She said: "I turned around and I saw the van 'Sherlock's Squeaky Clean'. My partner told me to take out my phone and call the Guards."
While she was holding her phone, she said that Sherlock swung his arm towards her.
"He hit me in the stomach."
The woman told the court that she had a small bruise on her stomach that "was not worth" taking a photograph of.
Representing the accused, solicitor Ken Cunningham asked her: "If you took your phone out to call the Guards, why didn't you record?"
The woman replied that the camera on her phone was broken. Mr Cunningham noted that there was no CCTV footage, recordings, pictures or records that corroborated the woman's account.
He said: "The only evidence to substantiate the claim is your testimony."
The court heard that Sherlock was distantly related to the woman but that their familial relationship was 'toxic' and deeply estranged. Mr Cunningham said that his client was working in Ballybricken at the time of the assault and couldn't have been on the Lower Yellow Road.
The court heard that the woman had made a number of serious allegations about various family members. Sherlock said to the court: "She's forever making up accusations."
Judge Staunton said: "This is essentially one person's word against another. I have to say I find her to be an extremely credible witness, I am taking what she said happened, happened."
He heard that Sherlock had 28 previous convictions, the most recent taking place in 2018. Most of the convictions were for road traffic-related matters but Sherlock did have one assault charge dated from 2012.
The Judge sentenced Sherlock to two months imprisonment, suspended for 12 months.
