Morris tribunal:A retired superintendent has said he was not at a meeting at which a letter from a consultant physician saying a prisoner should not be interrogated was discussed, nor did he learn about it until after he had questioned the prisoner for two hours.
John Fitzgerald said he was not at a meeting at 7pm on December 12th, 1996, where Det Sgt Sylvie Henry discussed the letter with two senior officers, Det Supt Joe Shelly and Det Insp John McGinley. Dr Brian Callaghan had written in the letter that because of his medical condition, it would not be in Frank McBrearty's snr's best interests to be interrogated by gardaí.
Mr McBrearty was arrested on December 5th, but had spent the following seven days in hospital.
Mr Fitzgerald said he had delegated the investigation into allegations that Mr McBrearty was interfering with witnesses to Det Supt Shelly and Det Insp McGinley.
Mr Fitzgerald said that later on December 12th, he and Det Insp McGinley met Mr McBrearty in his office at 10pm. Det Insp McGinley took notes of the meeting.
He denied categorically that Det Insp McGinley had given Mr McBrearty a blank piece of paper to sign during the interview.
"The only time he was asked to sign his name was when the notes were read over to him, and he refused point blank," Mr Fitzgerald told the tribunal.
At one point in the interview, he said, Mr McBrearty got down on his knees and prayed. It was close to midnight at the end of the meeting that he found out about the letter from Dr Callaghan.
Mr McBrearty said he was unwell and did not want to be put in a cell overnight. At this stage Det Insp McGinley told him about the letter. "I got a slight gone about it," Mr Fitzgerald said, "a little shock." He said it was an "oversight" that the member in charge of the station was not told of the consultant's opinion.
Retired detective sergeant John Melody told the tribunal he was "never informed of any letter" or that Mr McBrearty shouldn't be interviewed when he was called from Dublin to Donegal to interview him.
Mr Melody said Mr McBrearty gave no indication of being unwell when he was questioned, and if he had been told there was a problem, he would have approached the member in charge and senior officers.
Mr McBrearty was arrested on suspicion of interfering with witnesses during the Garda investigation into the death of hit-and-run victim Richie Barron.
Mr Melody said Mr McBrearty did not react when he was told his son had made a confession several days earlier. "I thought it was unusual that he didn't react to it."