Courts / Dublin / Report
Prison Service in "baffling" failure to bring murder plot accused to court
Summary
A High Court judge criticised the prison service for failing to bring Liam Brannigan, a 37‑year‑old from Bride Street, Dublin 8, to a Special Criminal Court hearing where he was charged with conspiring to murder Gary Hanley between 15 September and 6 November 2017. Brannigan, who pleaded not guilty and is remanded at Mountjoy Prison, was absent when the trial was set to begin at 11 a.m. The court had issued a production order for his appearance, but the prison service did not comply, creating a misunderstanding. Judge Paul Coffey, joined by Judges Sinéad Ní Chúlacháin and James Faughnan, described the failure as "baffling" and "patently obvious" that the court had ordered his presence. Coffey warned the prison service that such an omission should not recur and noted the absence of any phone call to the court before the scheduled start. The trial was rescheduled to resume at 2 p.m. on the same day.
Who, what, where, when and why
What: Report matter: Prison Service in "baffling" failure to bring murder plot accused to court. Charges or matters: conspiring to murder Gary Hanley at a location within the State between September 15th and November 6th, 2017. Procedural stage: charge_or_pretrial
When:
- September 15th Adjournment
- November 6th, 2017 Adjournment
- 2019-10-08 Publication
Case subjects
Accused
Charges: conspiring to murder Gary Hanley at a location within the State between September 15th and November 6th, 2017 (Alleged Or Contested)
Plea: Not guilty
Places mentioned
- Bride Street
- Dublin
- Special Criminal Court
- Mountjoy
- Mountjoy Prison
- Irish Prison
- The prison
Topics
Stage Charge Or Pretrial Violent Crime
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