A MAN who is charged with assaulting a garda, criminal damage and other offences walked free from the Circuit Criminal Court in Castlebar, Co Mayo, yesterday because the Central Mental Hospital had been unable to admit him for assessment earlier in the week.
Dismissing the charges against Edward (Jude) Doherty of Coldwell Street, Glasthule, Co Dublin, Judge Raymond Groarke said his duty required that he vindicate Mr Doherty’s constitutional rights.
Earlier in the week, the judge had entered a not guilty plea on behalf of Mr Doherty who faced a number of charges which included assaulting Sgt Fidelma Frennan at Ballina Garda station; criminal damage to a Garda station cell and threatening, abusive and insulting behaviour.
During the week, Judge Groarke made an order that Mr Doherty be committed to the Central Mental Hospital for an assessment.
But when he was brought to the hospital, he was denied admission.
As a result, the judge instructed that an agent of the hospital be brought before him to explain him why the admission could not take place.
In evidence yesterday, Prof Henry Kennedy, consultant psychiatrist and clinical director of the Central Mental Hospital, explained that the hospital had 93 beds, eight for women, the remainder for men.
All the beds were full at the moment with a substantial waiting list.
Dr Kennedy spent some hours yesterday in a cell assessing the defendant.
When asked in court if he minded Prof Kennedy giving evidence in court about the assessment, the defendant replied he “did not mind one way or the other”.
Judge Groarke said he did not take this as a consent from somebody whose mental capacity was in question.
The judge added that the matter posed a dilemma for him. Was the defendant to remain in custody until the Central Mental Hospital was in a position to deal with the order of the court?
Dismissing the charges, the judge said his constitutional duty required that he vindicate the defendant’s constitutional rights.
Speaking after the hearing, Prof Kennedy said section 4 (6) of the Criminal Law (Insanity) Act 2006 was “badly drafted and unworkable as it stands” because it meant psychiatric hospitals received no notice before a patient arrived at the institution.
A further problem with the Act, according to Prof Kennedy, was that it allowed judges to commit people compulsorily to a psychiatric hospital without a psychiatric certificate or assessment.
It also prevented judges from hearing a psychiatric assessment even when one had been prepared.
Prof Kennedy suggested that the law should be amended to allow for judges to request a psychiatric assessment rather than compulsorily committing people to a psychiatric hospital for such an assessment.