The Green Post Ireland
Three individuals accused of violating publication restrictions during the trial for Ana Kriégel’s murder have lost their Supreme Court appeal to be tried in the District Court, where the potential penalties are less severe than in the Circuit Court.
The three were among ten people charged under the Children Act 2001, which prohibits identifying the two boys convicted of killing 14-year-old Ana Kriégel at an abandoned farmhouse in Lucan, Co. Dublin, in May 2018. The boys were only 13 at the time.
Edel Doherty, Kyle Rooney, and Declan Corcoran faced charges for posting photos and names of the boys on social media. Initially, they were told the case could be heard in the District Court. However, a different District Court judge later decided the offences were too serious for that jurisdiction and sent the cases to the Circuit Court for trial, where more severe penalties apply.
The defendants challenged this decision in the High Court, which initially ruled in their favor, stating the case should return to the District Court. However, the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) appealed, and the Court of Appeal overturned the High Court ruling. Seeking a further appeal, the three argued that a Circuit Court trial would deny them certain statutory entitlements available in the District Court, such as potential treatment under the Probation Act without a conviction.
The Supreme Court unanimously dismissed the appeal on Thursday. Justice Peter Charleton clarified that the second judge, managing the case, was within his authority to assess whether these offences were minor or serious under article 38.2 of the Constitution, which addresses minor offences. According to Justice Charleton, the judge’s role in case management allowed him to determine that the cases were not minor, despite the initial judge’s view. Thus, the Supreme Court upheld the decision for the cases to proceed in the Circuit Court.
