Courts / Dublin / Report
Joe O'Reilly granted legal aid for Supreme Court bid
Summary
Joe O'Reilly, who was convicted in 2007 of murdering his wife and sentenced to life imprisonment, has been granted legal aid to pursue an appeal to the Supreme Court. The legal aid certificate was sought by his counsel, Ronan Munro BL, after a 2012 application to have his conviction declared a miscarriage of justice was dismissed as an "abuse of process" by the Court of Appeal. The Supreme Court has no automatic right of appeal in such cases, and the court has indicated that applications for legal aid should be made to the Court of Appeal. Mr Justice Birmingham, sitting with Mr Justice Seán Ryan and Mr Justice John Edwards, dismissed O'Reilly's appeal, stating that the arguments he raised were an "unacceptable strategy" because they were raised after the trial and after his earlier appeal. O'Reilly's application under section 2 of the Criminal Procedure Act was therefore not allowed to proceed to full hearing.
Who, what, where, when and why
What: Report matter: Joe O'Reilly granted legal aid for Supreme Court bid. Procedural stage: appeal. Findings: Found guilty
When:
- July 2007 Hearing Or Sentence
- October 4, 2004 Hearing Or Sentence
- August 2012 Hearing Or Sentence
- November 2012 Hearing Or Sentence
- 2016-07-22 Publication
Why: Hoever, senior counsel Brendan Grehan, for the Director of Public Prosecutions, successfully applied to have O'Reilly's application dismissed as an "abuse of process" because it was not based on any new or newly discovered facts as required under the Act. Prosecution account reported by CNI
Case subjects
Appellant
Finding: Found guilty
Outcome: Found guilty; In July 2007, O'Reilly was found guilty by a Central Criminal Court jury and sentenced to life imprisonment for the murder of his wife at their home in the Naul, Co. Mr Munro told the judge that O'Reilly was serving a life sentence.
Places mentioned
- Supreme Court
- Central Criminal Court
- Court of Appeal
- Midlands Prison
Topics
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