The High Court has rejected part of a challenge by a Cameroonian man detained at Cloverhill Prison pending deportation, while leaving a separate legal challenge to his detention for a later hearing.
J.A. arrived in Ireland in April 2008 and unsuccessfully sought asylum. A deportation order was made in December 2010. He failed to report to the Garda National Immigration Bureau in January 2011 and remained outside the deportation process for more than three years.
He later made several attempts to reopen or revoke his immigration position. A 2011 application for readmission to the protection process was refused. He presented again to GNIB in April 2014, and an application to revoke his deportation order was refused in September 2016.
On September 7, 2017, J.A. made another revocation application. After being told on September 13 that a flight had been booked for his return, he also sought readmission to the protection process under the International Protection Act 2015.
He was arrested the following day for deportation. He declined to cooperate and was taken to Cloverhill Prison.
In an Article 40 habeas corpus inquiry, J.A. argued that his fresh protection application gave him a right to remain in Ireland and prevented deportation.
Mr Justice Richard Humphreys held that a first, non-abusive application for readmission can in principle create a temporary right to remain under EU law. However, J.A. could not rely on that protection. He had already made an earlier readmission application, and the court also found that his latest application was abusive because it was made only when removal was imminent after years in which he could have applied.
The court therefore held that his detention remained lawful on those issues. However, a separate argument challenging the validity of the detention regulations was not decided. That part of the Article 40 inquiry was adjourned and the Attorney General was added as a notice party.