Irish Dopers: Is this story true?

[Cryptoderk]

http://www.galwayfirst.ie/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=114&Itemid=391

A man who was found dressed in latex and handcuffs brought a donkey to his room in a Galway city centre hotel, because he was advised “to get out and meet people,” the local court heard last week.
Thomas Aloysius McCarney with an address in south Galway was charged with cruelty to animals, lewd and obscene behaviour, and with being a danger to himself when he appeared before the court on Friday. He was also charged with damage to a mini-bar in the room, but this charge was later dropped when the defendant said that it was the donkey who caused that damage.
Solicitor for the accused Ms Sharon Fitzhenry said that her client had been through a difficult time lately and that his wife had left him and that his life had become increasingly lonely.
“Mr McCarney has been attending counselling at which he was told that he would be advised to get out and meet people and do interesting things. It was this advice that saw him book into the city centre hotel with a donkey,” she said. She added that Mr McCarney also suffered from a fixation with the Shrek movies and could constantly be heard at work talking to himself saying things like “Isn’t that right, Donkey?”
Supt John McBrearty told the court that Mr McCarney who had signed in as “ Mr Shrek” had told hotel staff that the donkey was a family pet and that this was believed by the hotel receptionist who the supt said was “young and hadn’t great English.”
Receptionist Irina Legova said that Mr McCarney had told her that the donkey was a breed of “super rabbit” which he was bringing to a pet fair in the city. The court was told that the donkey went berserk in the middle of the night and ran amok in the hotel corridor, forcing hotel staff to call the gardai.
McCarney was found in the room wearing a latex suit and handcuffs, the key to which the donkey is believed to have swallowed. He was removed to Mill St station after which it is said he was the subject of much mirth among the lads next door in The Galway Arms.
He was fined €2,000 for bringing the donkey to the room under the Unlawful Accommodation of Donkeys Act 1837. Other charges were dropped due to lack of evidence.

It sounds like a joke, but appears to be from a reputable source not on the first of April. Any ideas?

[Contrapuntal]

Another thread here. http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=410536

Seems absurd to me. Super rabbit? He talks to invisible donkeys at work? The chargers were dropped because *the donkey *destroyed the mini-bar?

And this ices the cake.

McCarney was found in the room wearing a latex suit and handcuffs, the key to which the donkey is believed to have swallowed. He was removed to Mill St station after which it is said he was the subject of much mirth among the lads next door in The Galway Arms.
He was fined €2,000 for bringing the donkey to the room under the Unlawful Accommodation of Donkeys Act 1837. Other charges were dropped due to lack of evidence.

[Malodorous]

Well if you were to ask me to speculate which country had an unlawful Accomadation of Donkey’s act on the books, Ireland would probably be near the top of my list of guesses.

[Princhester]

A quick search of the website of the Irish Attorney General (www.attorneygeneral.ie) shows there is no such thing as the Unlawful Accommodation of Donkeys Act. The story’s a joke.

[Cryptoderk]

@Princhester

A quick search of the website of the Irish Attorney General (www.attorneygeneral.ie) shows there is no such thing as the Unlawful Accommodation of Donkeys Act. The story’s a joke.

If it were dating back all that time, wouldn’t it be an English law?

[Princhester]

@Cryptoderk

If it were dating back all that time, wouldn’t it be an English law?

Indeed. The website lists all English statutes with application in Ireland. Not there.

[Spavined_Gelding]

@Princhester

A quick search of the website of the Irish Attorney General (www.attorneygeneral.ie) shows there is no such thing as the Unlawful Accommodation of Donkeys Act. The story’s a joke.

I am so disappointed. In a strangely perverse way I wanted it to be true, especially the Unlawful Accommodation of Donkeys part, as if this were a mater of special public concern in the Emerald Isle.

[glee]

I think someone is making an ass of us…

[Contrapuntal]

@Spavined Gelding

I am so disappointed. In a strangely perverse way I wanted it to be true, especially the Unlawful Accommodation of Donkeys part, as if this were a mater of special public concern in the Emerald Isle.

It may well be, according to a Mohamed al Fayed. From here.

The decision prompted an outburst from the Harrods chairman in which he demanded that Prince Philip and Charles be called to give evidence. “This country is ruled by donkeys.”

Perhaps the Irish simply want to limit the number of English politicians who can enter the country. Seems reasonable.

I think someone is making an ass of us…

Well, we know that the law is an ass. Therefore, the ass law is ass squared.

[yojimbo]

It’s a pisstake.

It originally came from a new site called Galwayfirst.ie(down for maintenance at the moment) in their few short weeks of operation they have had a few stories that were like this.

The name of the girl in the hotel is Irina Legova(leg over, get it?) which could be a character in a Austin Powers movie.

Just shows how lazy web hosts/journalists can take a story and make it seem real. Like the onion stories that have appeared in China as real stories.