Neighbour from hell played music so loud it caused house next door to vibrate

• 11h ago

A RESIDENT – who played his music so loudly it caused his next-door-neighbours’ home to ‘vibrate’ – was given a two-year suspended sentence after a judge found he’d made their lives hell.

Stephen Newman from the Oakview Estate in Clara was hit with four consecutive sentences of six months for each of four offences when he appeared before Judge Andrew Cody at Tullamore District Court last week.

Newman had been charged with failing to comply with a civil order made under section 115 of the Criminal Justice Act in that he played music at an excessively loud volume, he was heard screaming and shouting over the course of a number of hours and displayed general anti-social behaviour at various dates in 2022.

Judge Cody said his neighbour’s life had been hell with loud music, roaring and shouting and banging on walls.

Contacted by Independent.ie last Friday, Newman said the offences had taken places at an ‘emotional’ time for him.

He said he had heard about an article written on the case that had first appeared in the Tullamore Tribune.

“I heard about the article in the local paper but I didn’t read it,” he said.

“I’m waiting on another call about the probation report so I wouldn’t really like to comment in case I make things even worse.”

Asked about an unaffected neighbour’s claim that he had been playing the music loudly because he wanted it to be heard in the nearby graveyard where one of his parents lay buried, Newman responded: “It wasn’t my mother it was my father.

“It was an emotional time but like I said I don’t want to comment on it.

“It’s just an awkward situation with the next-door-neighbour so I don’t want to comment on it at all.”

The neighbour affected by Newman’s behaviour over the course of 2022 declined to comment when approached.

At last week’s court sitting, and reading from a statement, Judge Andrew Cody said the neighbours had complained that Newman had played the music so loud that the whole house vibrates.

He puts posts on Facebook calling them names.

And they said that during Covid the house became a party house.

Solicitor Donal Farrelly said his client felt that was an exaggeration.

He said he was sincerely apologising .

For the offence of September 9, 2022 Judge Cody imposed a six month sentence which he suspended for two years.

He handed down another six months for the offence on July 14, 2022 to run concurrent.

For the offence on July 26, 2022, he imposed a six-month sentence to run consecutively and for the offence on August 28, 2022, he imposed another six-month sentence also to run consecutively.

He suspended the sentences for a period of two years.

The judge told the defendant that if he is back before the court within those two years his neighbours will get peace because he will be going to jail,

“Their lives have been hell,’’ he said.