Courts / Dublin / Report

Gardai gave false impression over identification of accused, lawyers tell miscarriage of justice hearing

Date
2023-03-02
Stage
Appeal
Primary locality
Dublin
County
Dublin

Summary

Lawyers for Declan Tynan, who spent 11 months in jail before his conviction was quashed, argued that Gardaí gave a false impression of a spontaneous identification of the accused at a Ladbrokes bookmakers attack in Tallaght on 13 December 2012. Tynan, 33, maintained his innocence and was convicted on the basis of a single visual identification by a Garda from CCTV footage. He was sentenced to four years' imprisonment, with the final year suspended. After an appeal was dismissed, a new witness came forward claiming to be the third attacker, leading to a Court of Appeal hearing in April 2018 that quashed the conviction under Section 2 of the Criminal Procedure Act. In the current appeal, counsel alleged that Gardaí circulated a bulletin and later sent an internal email that identified Tynan as a suspect, but this was not disclosed at trial. The appeal is set to continue tomorrow before a three‑judge panel. Declan Tynan pleaded not guilty.

Who, what, where, when and why

What: Report matter: Gardai gave false impression over identification of accused, lawyers tell miscarriage of justice hearing. Procedural stage: appeal

When:

Why: Det Sgt Loughrey said it had long been standard practice that internal emails or intelligence not be disclosed "as a matter of course" because of their confidentiality. CNI source report

Case subjects

Declan Tynan

Defendant

Plea: Not guilty

Outcome: A jury found Mr Tynan guilty and he was sentenced to four years imprisonment with the final year suspended by Judge Patricia Ryan on January 13, 2017.

Places mentioned

Court Venue
  • Court of Appeal
  • Dublin
  • Dublin Circuit Criminal Court
Residence
Secondary Mention

Topics

Stage Appeal

Related court reports

Read the original CNI report

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