A FORMER GARDA who treated his wife like “chattel” has avoided jail after pleading guilty to controlling and coercive behaviour over three years.

David Reynolds (45), who was dismissed from An Garda Síochána in August, had recorded conversations, installed a tracker on his wife’s phone and ordered her to stay at home or locked her inside during a volatile and protracted period, Mullingar Circuit Criminal Court heard.

On Friday, Judge Keenan Johnson imposed an 18-month suspended sentence for eight years and ordered him to pay €10,000 in compensation.

His removal from the force came after he admitted to controlling and coercive behaviour from 1 January 2019 until 18 July 2022, which would have had a serious effect on his now-separated wife, Ashley Masterson. 

Judge Johnson said that Reynolds “has a very old-fashioned attitude that is left long in the past in Ireland today.”

He told Reynolds that marriage should be a union of equals based on mutual respect, support, affection and love.

The judge noted evidence that during rows Reynolds had locked his wife inside or out of their home. Once, when she was out, he demanded to know where she was and insisted that she take a picture of her location to prove she was telling the truth.

The judge said the accused had a short fuse, controlled their finances and was the sole income earner; in one instance, he threw his wife on the ground outside their home, cutting her knees, and on another date put his fist through a bathroom window.

Counselling reports on Reynolds outlined that he had previously been treated for mental health issues.

He had also suffered injuries in a traffic accident, and his wife had felt the medication he received made him aggressive. The judge said it appeared that whenever he lost his temper, it subsided quickly and he would apologise.

Judge Johnson said there were conflicting factors, but he took into account Reynolds’s involvement in his children’s lives and wanted to ensure no further damage to them.

However, he highlighted how the manipulative behaviour had left the victim emotionally scarred and now living in cramped conditions since moving out.

He hoped the ruling would give them closure and wished Ms Masterson well in the future.

The judge said these cases mostly have additional counts such as assault and threats to kill on the indictment, which were not a feature in this instance, adding that it was difficult to find a sentencing precedent.

He said it was clear their relationship was volatile and there had been physical violence on each side. Both had mental health issues, but the accused had anger-management problems, and the victim had no control over her own finances.

Ms Masterson did not attend the sentencing but attended the previous hearing in May, when her victim impact statement was read into the court record. It began with: “I waive my right to anonymity,” meaning he could be named.

Her statement continued, “As a result of my marriage, I have been left with constant fatigue, stress and anxiety. The ongoing argument, control and bullying have left me emotionally scarred and with massive trust issues against people, even when they are trying to help me; I push them away to protect myself. I am filled with sadness and shame that I have missed out on the most important years of my children’s childhood.”

She described how the ordeal left her financially destroyed, while living on the fourth floor of an apartment block that “resembles an attic.”

“All I can hope for is for things to improve, but I live with that feeling of dread that this is as good as life gets for us. I hope I manage to move on and make the best of things, but the tiredness of the last decade makes me feel like giving up most days. I feel like I’ve lost my own personality and nearly hate going places and seeing how happy and normal other family units are.”

Garda Sergeant Orla Keenan agreed with Cathal Ó Braonáin BL, instructed by the State solicitor for Westmeath, Matt Shaw, that the woman made complaints to gardaí in Mullingar.

The seizure of the accused’s phone revealed 13 hours of recorded conversations.

The court heard that they married in 2011; Reynolds later began accusing Ashley Masterson of lying, or infidelity, and did not want her to see a friend he disapproved of and stopped her from leaving the house.

In the recordings, the couple could be heard shouting at each other, with sounds of the arguments becoming physical on both sides.

Some recordings continued after the arguments, during which Reynolds could be heard sobbing. The father of three would not let her record while he recorded conversations, and he also called gardaí to carry out unnecessary welfare checks on her.

He also told gardaí that he earned the money and his wife spent it.

Reynolds joined An Garda Síochána in 2003, and from the following year, he worked in traffic policing out of Dublin Castle before being transferred to the Westmeath Division in 2019.

Sergeant Keenan agreed that Reynolds, with an address near Mullingar, was the sole income earner in the household, and the recordings reflected calm periods and periods of escalation, as well as household issues, particularly as they moved toward separation. The sergeant agreed that the escalations de-escalated quite quickly.

Defence counsel Andrea Callan said that there appeared to be financial pressures, Reynolds had a long commute, and both individuals were dealing with mental health issues. She emphasised that her client now accepts that he overreacted.

In court, Reynolds spoke only to confirm his plea and agree to the terms of his suspended sentence.

Counsel described their issues as waxing and waning, and the sergeant said their relationship fluctuated, as indicated by statements of withdrawal.

The court had heard that the accused remained involved in his children’s lives and supported them, and he was devastated by the situation.

He was suspended in January, obtained construction work and has become extremely isolated, the court heard.

Judge Johnson said Reynolds had fallen from grace and lost his reputation, but stressed that as a member of the gardaí he was held to a higher standard than other members of the public.

Counselling notes also indicated he was remorseful, and the judge took into account the guilty plea and the fact that incarcerating him would separate him from his family.

The judge also ordered him to comply with probation supervision for 18 months and attend anger management counselling.

Reynolds entered an additional plea on Friday to an unrelated offence. It was under section 10 of the Criminal Justice (Theft and Fraud Offences) Act 2001, for falsifying a vehicle change-of-ownership document to avoid paying motor tax over four years. He will receive a Probation Act order on that charge if he donates €1,000 to the Garda Benevolent Fund by next Tuesday.