'It would be nice' if EU courts gave structure on accessing phone data, Lunney judge says

At the Special Criminal Court in Dublin, Mr Justice Tony Hunt expressed frustration regarding the absence of clear European Union guidance on police access to mobile phone data during the trial of four men accused of abducting and assaulting Quinn Industrial Holdings director Kevin Lunney near Ballinagh, County Cavan in September 2019. Mr Justice Hunt stated it would be beneficial if the Court of Justice of the European Union provided explicit structural guidance on the matter, noting that such issues have arisen repeatedly across cases. The court heard six days of legal argument concerning the admissibility of mobile phone evidence. The Director of Public Prosecutions submitted that phone data showing the accused men's movements should be admitted, whilst defence counsel argued that mass retention contravenes EU law and privacy rights. A separate issue arose regarding whether a garda sergeant provided accurate information when obtaining a warrant to access one defendant's phone data. The three judges indicated a ruling on admissibility would be delivered the following week, with prosecution CCTV evidence to continue.