74-Year-Old Tralee Woman Convicted of Harassing Man with 150 Phone Calls

A jury at Tralee Circuit Court found Kate Burgess guilty of harassing a man through near-daily phone calls over five months, with the victim telling the court he had to move house to escape the unwanted contact.

74-Year-Old Tralee Woman Convicted of Harassing Man with 150 Phone Calls

A jury at Tralee Circuit Court took just 28 minutes to find a 74-year-old woman guilty of harassing a man by repeatedly calling his phone over a five-month period.

Kate Burgess, of Park Lane Apartments in Tralee, made approximately 150 calls to the man's phone between February and July 2023. The calls came on a near-daily basis, sometimes multiple times per day and at all hours, according to evidence presented at the trial reported by Radio Kerry.

The victim testified that he had bought Burgess and a friend a drink during a night out 35 years ago and had been unable to shake her since. He never answered her calls and never returned them. Each time he blocked her number, she would find another phone to continue contacting him.

On advice from gardaí, the man began keeping a detailed log of the calls and voicemails. In court, he read from his notes, which recorded messages including "Goodnight, I love you," "Hello darling," and "I'm sorry we missed our dinner date." Other voicemails featured Burgess rambling about sausages and cigarettes, and on one occasion she sang "Glory, glory hallelujah" into the phone.

The man also received calls from hotels and taxi companies after Burgess gave them his number and falsely claimed he had paid for her accommodation or fare. He told the court the harassment forced him to move house.

Burgess admitted to gardaí that she had made most of the calls, but denied the charge of harassment. She claimed she believed she was helping the man. Represented by barrister Katie O'Connell, instructed by solicitor Eimear Griffin, the defence told the jury that Burgess simply wanted friendship and probably should have contacted a charity instead.

Burgess, who has experienced periods of homelessness, was remanded in custody pending sentencing on Tuesday.

The jury returned a unanimous guilty verdict after 28 minutes of deliberation.

Source: Google News IE — Crime (en)