Dáil passes motion to establish Curtin committee

The Dáil and the Seanad have  passed a motion allowing a committee to collect evidence against embattled Circuit Court Judge …

The Dáil and the Seanad have  passed a motion allowing a committee to collect evidence against embattled Circuit Court Judge Brian Curtin.

The group, made up of four TDs and three senators,  will work together and report back to the Houses when they have finished their work.

Circuit Court Judge Brian Curtin
Circuit Court Judge Brian Curtin

It will be chaired by Fianna Fáil TD for Cork South-West, Mr Denis O'Donovan, and will also contain Fine Gael's justice spokesman, Mr Jim O'Keeffe, Labour's spokesman, Mr Joe Costello,  Mayo Independent TD, Dr Jerry Cowley,   Senators Ms Geraldine Feeney (FF), Mr John Dardis (PD) and Mr Michael Finucane (FG).

They will begin their work next Tuesday.

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The Government Chief Whip, Ms Mary Hanafin, insisted the committee was not a jury and would not treat the case as a criminal trial.

The Minister for Justice, Mr McDowell, proposed a motion in the Dáil yesterday calling for the removal of Judge Curtin.

The motion, which was adjourned, calls for "the removal, pursuant to Article 35.4 of the Constitution and section 39 of the Courts of Justice Act 1924, of His Honour Judge Brian Curtin, Judge of the Circuit Court, from office for stated misbehaviour, being his conduct in and in relation to subscribing to, accessing and use of websites containing child pornographic images and thereby rendering himself unsuitable to exercise the office of a Judge of the Circuit Court".

Judge Curtin was acquitted of possessing child pornography after it emerged a warrant used to search his Tralee home was out-of-date.

High Court proceedings were initiated by the judge on Tuesday night. A plenary summons was lodged in the High Court by solicitors for Judge Curtin seeking a declaration that evidence collected unlawfully - using the invalid warrant- cannot be used in any proceedings.

He is also seeking damages for trespass and breach of his constitutional rights over the use of the defective Garda warrant.