The High Court has awarded Alan, Phyllis and Francis Gray a total of €70,000 after finding that a Garda disclosure of confidential information about a guest in their Ballybunion home led to newspaper coverage, harassment and the family’s departure from Kerry.
Mr Justice Quirke ruled that a member or members of An Garda Síochána had negligently disclosed sensitive information to a journalist for The Kerryman. The disclosure breached the State’s duty of care to the family and their constitutional right to privacy and peaceful enjoyment of their home. The State was held vicariously liable.
The family had moved from Blanchardstown to Ballybunion in 1995 under a rural resettlement scheme. In February 1999, Alan Gray agreed to provide temporary accommodation to his nephew, James O’Donoghue, who had been convicted of violent rape and released from prison. The judgment said Garda records about O’Donoghue, including his location and criminal history, were confidential and accessible only to authorised Garda officers.
After a journalist received an anonymous call about a sex offender in Ballybunion, he sought to verify the information. The judge found that he was given details including O’Donoghue’s presence in the town, his recent release from prison and the link between Garda enquiries and a sexual offence investigation in Dublin. The journalist declined to identify or exclude Garda sources. The court concluded, on the balance of probabilities, that the information and verification came from one or more Garda members.
The Kerryman published an article on 7 April 1999, followed by further local and national coverage. The family faced journalists and photographers at their home, and their daughter received distressing calls. They left Ballybunion permanently by 12 April. The judgment described a year of temporary accommodation in Dublin before the family moved into local authority housing.
The court accepted that the State’s disclosure caused distress and inconvenience, and that Phyllis Gray suffered serious psychological injury, including depression and post-traumatic stress that resolved by early 2006. It awarded €15,000 to Alan Gray, €5,000 to Francis Gray and €50,000 to Phyllis Gray.
The judge did not find that Gardaí assaulted Francis Gray during a visit to the family home on 4 April 1999. He described the relevant evidence as unsatisfactory and inconclusive and said the plaintiffs had not proved assault or battery on the balance of probabilities. The judgment addressed the civil claims and damages; it did not determine criminal liability.