Girl's uncle cites crime law `flaws'

The uncle of Siobhan Hynes, the Connemara schoolgirl who was raped and murdered in December 1998, has appealed to the Minister for Justice to address "serious flaws" within the criminal justice system, which, he said, appear to protect the perpetrators of crime.

Mr Michael Hynes, a healthcare professional based in Boston, has also expressed concern at the system's failure to differentiate between children and adults where rape and murder are concerned.

In a letter to the Minister, which has as yet received no response, Mr Hynes addresses the specific issues of bail and the long delays in trials being brought to court. Last June, John McDonagh (27), a builder's labourer of Carraroe, Co Galway, was convicted of the rape and murder of 17-year-old Siobhan Hynes at Tismeain beach, Carraroe, on December 6th, 1998. He was automatically sentenced to life imprisonment for the murder and sentencing was adjourned on the rape conviction.

On July 23rd last, he was jailed for 10 years by Mr Justice Patrick Smith for the rape of Ms Hynes. The judge ruled that both sentences should run concurrently and refused leave to appeal. However, McDonagh's defence counsel, Mr Barry White SC, said he intended to appeal both convictions and the judge granted legal aid in the event of a certificate of leave to appeal being granted.

After the main hearing, the parents of Siobhan, Mr Andy and Mrs Brid Hynes, welcomed the verdict. However, they expressed disappointment at the rape sentence, with Mrs Hynes emphasising that "no sentence would ever bring Siobhan back".

Siobhan Hynes was raped with an object and Mr Justice Smith described it as "most cruel". "The amount of pain associated with these injuries must have been intense," he said. The rape object was never found and Siobhan died from drowning and compression of the neck.

Mr Michael Hynes, Siobhan's uncle, is disappointed with the rape verdict, which, he believes, should not run concurrently with the murder sentence. "The 10-year sentence should have been applied as additional time to be served," he said.

Mr Hynes has also expressed serious concern about the long delay in holding the trial - a wait of two years and five months for the Hynes family - and about the decision to release McDonagh on bail during most of the period after his arrest on June 17th, 1999. The initial bail application in the High Court was opposed by Garda Supt Jim Sugrue, who said he feared McDonagh would not stand trial.

Mr Justice Kinlen said there were only two grounds on which he could refuse bail - the likelihood that the defendant would abscond or that he would interfere with witnesses. He said he did not have the evidence to lead him to believe that either would occur.

During his period on bail, McDonagh was rearrested and appeared in Dublin District Court in August of last year on a charge of soliciting for the purposes of prostitution. Last August, the Director of Public Prosecutions sought to have his bail revoked in Galway District Court but McDonagh applied to the High Court in Dublin to have the terms of his bail varied.

Mr Hynes said he finds the decision to permit bail to be "discouraging and insensitive". The victim's family was not notified when the second bail application was made before the High Court last year. "Imagine the humiliation of hearing on the local radio on September 21st last year during a news broadcast that the person charged with one's daughter's death had been released again," he said.

"It is quite obvious that serious flaws lie within the criminal justice system that would permit such a person charged with a heinous crime to roam free while awaiting trial. It also shows that the victims' families are completely ignored by the legal system during this."

Mr Hynes is also concerned about the lack of differentiation between children and adults in relation to rape and murder. "Of course, such acts of violence on any person are unacceptable," he emphasised.

The Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform has said that granting of bail is a court decision and courts are constitutionally independent. It is a longstanding practice that the Minister does not comment on court decisions, a spokesman said.