Courts / Dublin / Report

Judge to deliver indicative sentences amidst prison officer vaccine dispute

Date
2021-04-20
Stage
Charge Or Pretrial
Primary locality
Tallaght
County
Dublin

Summary

In a Dublin Circuit Criminal Court hearing on 20 April 2021, Judge Martin Nolan announced that he would begin issuing indicative sentences, to be formally imposed at a later date, because prison officers were on industrial action and had not arrived at court by the scheduled time. The Prison Officers' Association had directed staff to focus on prison duties amid a dispute over Covid‑19 vaccination timing, leading to delays in escorting prisoners for court appearances. Eight sentences originally scheduled for the morning were adjourned to later in the month. Judge Nolan said he would first address bail cases and then hand down indicative sentences in cases where the Prison Service was unavailable, noting that the situation was unlikely to improve and might worsen. He postponed the formal sentencing for several weeks, citing the ongoing strike and the absence of prison officers.

Who, what, where, when and why

What: Report matter: Judge to deliver indicative sentences amidst prison officer vaccine dispute. Procedural stage: charge_or_pretrial

When:

Places mentioned

Court Venue
  • Dublin
  • Dublin Circuit Criminal Court
Facility
  • The Prison
Secondary Mention

Topics

Stage Charge Or Pretrial

Related court reports

Read the original CNI report

Correction or retraction request

If a fact, identity, locality or legal outcome needs review, email the newsroom with this report's details prefilled.

Email a correction request