Dáil Éireann debate -
Wednesday, 30 May 2001

Vol. 537 No. 3

Adjournment Debate. - Garda Investigations.

Mr. Gregory

I thank the Ceann Comhairle for allowing me to raise this important issue on the Adjournment. I commend the RTE "Prime Time" team on a fine programme which was clearly in the public interest as well as in the interests of the relatives of the unfortunate victims, Sylvia Shields and Mary Callinan, and of Dean Lyons, against whom there was undoubtedly a serious miscarriage of justice. I also commend Jim Cusack, an investigative journalist with The Irish Times, who in a series of articles and radio interviews first drew attention to and pursued the serious issues involved in this case. Aspects of this case were previously raised in this House by various Members, including myself.

The brutal murders of Sylvia Shields and Mary Callinan in Grangegorman in March 1997 were probably the most horrific murders of recent times. It would be hard to imagine two more vulnerable or defenceless victims than these unfortunate women. If for no other reason than the extreme callousness of the murder of these innocents, this case must be brought to finality, the person responsible prosecuted and justice done.

However, other issues must also be resolved. Take the case of Dean Lyons who claimed to have carried out the murders. I hope the Minister will take responsibility for establishing the answers to the following questions. Did the statement of Dean Lyons contain information that was known only to the investigating gardaí and to the murderer, information that had not been referred to in media coverage of the crime? If his statement contained information which he did not have, is the only rational explanation that investigating gardaí suggested the details to him and effectively shaped his statement to a degree that made it possible to prosecute him for the crime? Is there some other explanation?

Was this question addressed by the inquiry carried out by the assistant Garda commissioner? What were the findings and what recommendations were made arising from this inquiry? Why do these matters remain secret? Will the Minister request the Garda authorities to make the findings public? Why are we told by authoritative people that the detailed written statement of Dean Lyons is a precise, chronologically correct narrative about the murders in language beyond his ability and in contrast to the earlier – that same afternoon – confused incoherence of his first taped interview? Was Dean Lyons in fact suffering from heroin withdrawal symptoms when these statements were taken?

I ask these questions in the context of the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform's reply to my parliamentary question on 3 April this year when he stated that the assistant commissioner's inquiry established that the treatment of persons in custody regulations were complied with in full in respect of Dean Lyons. If this is the case, those regulations need to be radically reviewed. Perhaps we need to go further and appoint an ombudsman to deal with such matters.

The family of Dean Lyons deserves, at the least, a full apology from the Garda and a clear statement that he was innocent of this dreadful crime. What would have happened if Mark Nash had not murdered Carl and Catherine Doyle in County Roscommon on 15 August that same year and had he not then admitted to the gardaí that he had murdered the two women in Grangegorman? Would Dean Lyons have been found guilty of their murder? We must also ask if the type of Garda statement taking experienced by Dean Lyons is standard procedure. If this happened to Dean Lyons, has it happened to others? That question is now inescapable. Answers must be found to these questions.

There is also the case of Mark Nash. He made several statements of admission to the murders of Sylvia Shields and Mary Callinan. His statement, we are told, contained details about a third woman in the house in Grangegorman, about whom there was no previous public knowledge. However, he still has not been charged with their murder. This case demands that whoever was responsible must be brought to justice. A way must be found to ensure that this happens. The Director of Public Prosecutions must review his decision in the matter.

I regret that the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform did not see fit, given the importance of this case, to turn up in the Dáil this evening.

Éamon Ó Cuív

I am sure the whole House will agree that this was an extraordinary case. It is, however, important to be clear about what happened.

The Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform, Deputy O'Donoghue, who cannot be in attendance here tonight, has been informed by the Garda authorities that soon after his arrest, Mr. Lyons made a full admission to investigating officers of his alleged guilt in the double murder, and that this confession was recorded on audio-video tape. Later on that same day, Mr. Lyons made a further detailed admission of his alleged involvement in the murders. This interview was not audio-visually recorded, at Mr. Lyons's request.

The Minister has also been informed by the Garda authorities that the greater part of the detail in Mr Lyons's statements was general in nature, and within the public domain, as the murders had occurred more than four months previously. On the advice of the Director of Public Prosecutions, the case against Mr. Lyons was dropped at Dublin District Court on 29 April 1998. No other person has been charged with this crime and the investigation remains open.

The Minister has also been informed by the Garda authorities that the investigation carried out by an assistant commissioner indicated that Dean Lyons did not commit the murders. I understand that this officer has offered, through the Lyons's family solicitor, to meet the family to discuss the investigation. The gardaí had also been in frequent contact with the Lyons family, prior to his untimely death in the UK.

The Minister has informed the House on previous occasions that the subsequent investigation by the assistant commissioner established that the interview in which Mr. Lyons claimed responsibility was carried out in accordance with regulations. Even so, he accepts that these events clearly have implications for the training of Garda interviewers.

I am therefore glad to report to the House that Garda authorities have informed the Minister that the relevant training is under way, with the implementation of a course on audio-visual investigation interviewing techniques. The course includes an overview of the available expert opinion and other relevant material designed to develop awareness when interviewing suspects with potential psychological vulnerabilities. The training emphasises the necessity for the investigating gardaí to alert the Director of Public Prosecutions to any known or perceived vulnerabilities when they submit the investigation file to that office.

As the House will be aware, audio/video recording facilities are currently being installed at a total of approximately 150 Garda stations throughout the country. This has already been done at 12 locations to date and arrangements have been finalised for the supply of the equipment required for the other stations. I understand from the Garda authorities that they expect to have these facilities provided at all the relevant locations before the end of the year. I can assure this House that the Garda authorities and the other parties concerned are proceeding with the practical steps involved with the necessary speed.

The other suspect whose name was mentioned in connection with the Grangegorman murders was arrested on 16 August 1997 in connection with a serious crime in County Roscommon. While in custody, he made a number of statements in relation to his alleged involvement in the murder of the two women, although I understand that he later retracted his statements of admission. The Garda Commissioner then directed that an investigation into this man's alleged involvement in the murders be carried out by an assistant commissioner.

The Minister has been assured by the Garda authorities that the investigation which followed was a thorough one and that a complete file was submitted to the Director of Public Prosecutions for his consideration. The director decided that no prosecution should take place. As the House will appreciate, the director is independent in the discharge of his functions and is precluded from giving reasons for his decisions in any case other than to the investigating members of the Garda Síochána. It would not be proper for me to comment any further on the decision of the director, due to the independence of his office.

I can fully understand the pain felt by the families of those who were killed at Grangegorman. No one has yet been tried for the murders, and this leaves many of their questions unanswered. I understand, however, that the assistant commissioner, who carried out the investigation and compiled the report, is willing to meet the victims' families and to discuss the contents of his report with them, should they wish to do so.