Minister has advice for judiciary

A wave of revulsion swept the country in response to the killing of apprentice plumber Anthony Campbell. His family received messages of sympathy from total strangers, many doing so through radio phone-in programmes. The Government came in for criticism from all quarters. Opposition politicians said they were to blame for not investing in An Garda Síochána. In response Minister for Justice Michael McDowell said that the garda authorities had acknowledged that they had access to all the necessary manpower and he had a blank chequebook ready, if asked for additional resources.
The only group apart from the criminals to come in for criticism from all quarters was the judiciary. It was alleged that our judges were out of touch with reality and deliberately ignoring the wishes of the electorate, as expressed in a referendum, and of the Oireachtas. At the core of this criticism was the readiness with which judges allow criminals out on bail after they have been charged with serious crime. The Irish Independent claimed that the 23 associates of Martin Hyland who had been granted bail had faced "charges ranging from drug trafficking to firearms possession and armed robbery". It also quoted official figures which showed that criminals on bail last year were known to have been responsible for 5,456 additional offences, including 20 homicides. Paul Williams claimed that it is not unknown for a criminal to be brought before the courts for a crime committed while on bail and to again be granted bail and that this can happen repeatedly. The other issue on which the judges are seen to be letting the nation down is in their unwillingness to impose the mandatory minimum ten-years sentence on those caught with significant quantities of drugs. Most judges seem to view ten as the maximum and then look for reasons to reduce it.
In the Dáil on Thursday and at the Garda Training College in Templemore on Friday, Mr McDowell criticised those members of the judiciary who fail to apply the bail laws as they now stand. In a referendum the people approved a change in the Constitution which allowed the Oireachtas to tighten the law so that those considered likely to commit further crimes could be remanded in custody. The Minister was concerned that, although the District Court regularly refused bail, this was frequently reversed by the High Court. Lawyers, he said, appeared to wait until particular judges were sitting before applying for bail in the upper court.
He also referred to the disregard judges have for the legislation which calls for mandatory ten-year sentences for major drug criminals. In exceptional circumstances a judge is entitled to impose a lesser sentence but Mr McDowell, not unreasonably, argued that 80% of cases cannot be considered exceptional.