The High Court has ordered Richard Curtin’s surrender to the United Kingdom under a Trade and Cooperation Agreement warrant, after rejecting his objections to the request. The ruling concerns surrender proceedings, not a new determination of his conviction or sentence.
Mr Justice Patrick McGrath delivered the judgment on 21 February 2025. Curtin was convicted of manslaughter at the Central Criminal Court in London in 2018 and sentenced to 10 years in prison. He was released on licence in November 2022 after four years in custody, but failed to maintain contact with probation services. His licence was revoked, and he remains subject to it until October 2027. He was arrested in Ireland in September 2024 and remanded in custody pending the proceedings.
The warrant contained errors about whether the offence was a listed offence, whether it was extra-territorial, and whether a life sentence and review applied. In response to requests for clarification, the Crown Prosecution Service said those entries were mistakes: the conviction was for an offence committed in England, the sentence was 10 years with six years remaining, and no life sentence had been imposed. The judge accepted the additional information and found that the conduct described corresponded to manslaughter and arson offences under Irish law. He dismissed the objections based on the warrant’s errors and extra-territoriality, finding no bar under section 44 of the 2003 Act.
Curtin also argued that his mental health and conditions in UK prisons created a real risk of rights violations. The judge noted the general criticisms of overcrowding, violence, healthcare and resources in the prison estate, but said there was no medical or expert evidence establishing Curtin’s specific needs or showing that they would not be met. He dismissed the objection, finding the evidence did not establish a real risk of inhuman or degrading treatment. A separate objection based on family and personal rights was also dismissed; the court had received no submissions or evidence supporting it.
The court rejected Curtin’s argument that a possible future licence condition restricting travel would make surrender unlawful. It said the licence could require permission to leave the UK while a sentence was being served in the community, and that no evidence showed he would be unable to challenge an unlawful restriction in UK courts.
The judge concluded that the objections had not been made out and ordered surrender under section 16 of the European Arrest Warrant Act 2003, as amended.