A jury has been shown copies of court summonses that were struck out or withdrawn in district courts in Limerick during the trial of a retired garda superintendent and four gardaí, who are accused of interfering with potential or ongoing road traffic prosecutions. The summonses pertain to speeding, using a mobile phone while driving, not wearing seat belts, and driving without insurance.
Siobhán O’Connor, the head of the Limerick Court Office, explained the shorthand notes judges wrote on the summonses to the jurors. She clarified that 'S/O' indicated the summons was struck out, while 'ST' signified an application made by a prosecuting sergeant acting on behalf of the state. The record also showed that 'WD' stood for withdrawn.
In total, 20 summonses that had been struck out or withdrawn were presented to the jury.
During cross-examination, defence counsel Felix McEnroy SC pressed Ms. O’Connor on the nature of district court rulings, noting that judges issue a wide range of orders, including withdrawing or striking out summonses or dismissing cases. Ms. O’Connor acknowledged that there is a single decision maker in the district court—the judge.
Ms. O’Connor was asked whether she knew if any judges who made these decisions were informed of matters after the decisions were issued. She replied that she did not know. The witness also agreed that it can be normal for a summons to be struck out in certain circumstances, such as when a motorist is stopped without a driving licence and later produces it at a Garda station.
The case involves former Garda Superintendent Eamon O’Neill, along with Sergeant Anne Marie Hassett, Sergeant Michelle Leahy, Garda Colm Geary, and Garda Tom McGlinchy, who have pleaded not guilty to 39 charges alleging conduct aimed at perverting the course of justice under common law, with alleged events occurring between October 2016 and September 2019. The charges stem from an investigation conducted by the National Bureau of Criminal Investigation.
