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Revisiting court jurisdictional decisions could lead to 'chaos', Supreme Court told in Kriegel murderer identification case

Summary

In a Supreme Court appeal, three defendants—Edel Doherty, Kyle Rooney, and Declan Corcoran—argue that they should not have been transferred from the District Court to the Circuit Court after breaching publication restrictions in the Ana Kriegel murder case. The defendants were charged with posting photos and naming the teenage murderers, Boy A and Boy B, on social media. Judge Brian O'Shea originally accepted the cases as minor matters in the District Court, but Judge John Hughes later deemed the offences too serious and sent them to the Circuit Court, where penalties are harsher. The High Court quashed Hughes' decision, and the State appealed to the Court of Appeal. The Supreme Court is hearing the appeal, with counsel arguing that jurisdiction was already decided and that revisiting it could cause procedural chaos. The court has reserved judgment.

Who, what, where, when and why

What: Report matter: Revisiting court jurisdictional decisions could lead to 'chaos', Supreme Court told in Kriegel murderer identification case. Charges or matters: posting photos on Facebook of the two murderers, known as Boy A and Boy B; posting photos of the two boys on Twitter. Procedural stage: appeal

When:

• May 2018 Incident
• October 2020 Incident
• December 2, 2020 Hearing Or Sentence
• 2024-10-15 Publication

Why: At the Supreme Court today Feichín McDonagh SC, for Mr Corcoran, said that there was "no precedent" for Judge Hughes sending the matter forward to the Circuit Court, because jurisdiction was already decided. CNI source report

Case subjects

Places mentioned

Topics

Stage Appeal Violent Crime

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Read the original CNI report