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No independent oversight of State requests for mobile phone data, High Court hears

Summary

In a High Court hearing, lawyers for Graham Dwyer argued that the 2011 Communications Act gives State agencies—such as An Garda Siochana, the Defence Forces, the Competition Authority and the Revenue Commissioners—unrestricted power to request mobile phone data from service providers without any independent oversight. The counsel explained that the Act requires providers to comply with such requests and does not appoint a judge or other independent figure to limit the scope or safeguard privacy rights. Dwyer's claim is that this lack of oversight violates his privacy rights under the European Charter, the Irish Constitution and the European Convention on Human Rights. He also contends that the Act, introduced to implement a 2006 EU directive later invalidated by the European Court of Justice, should not have been used as evidence against him in his 2015 murder trial. The case remains before the Court of Appeal.

Who, what, where, when and why

What: Report matter: No independent oversight of State requests for mobile phone data, High Court hears. Procedural stage: appeal

When:

• 2018-02-21 Publication

Places mentioned

Topics

Stage Appeal Violent Crime

Read the original CNI report