CONVICTED CRIMINAL John Gilligan has complained of being bullied at Portlaoise Prison by Governor Edward Whelan.
Gilligan (58) made the accusation while defending himself on a charge of possessing a mobile phone at his prison cell on July 30th, 2008.
“This man, this governor bullies me, he hinders me”, Gilligan told a sitting of Portlaoise District Court yesterday. The accusation was strongly rejected by Mr Whelan who said, “I totally reject that, I don’t bully or harass.”
Gilligan claimed inmates had free rein of the prison before an inmate, John Daly, phoned RTÉ from Portlaoise Prison.
The call caused massive controversy about the use of mobiles in prison. Daly was murdered in the months following the call.
Before the phone call “we could do anything”, Gilligan told the court. He claimed it “was a free for all” for prisoners prior to the incident.
Gilligan alleged the Department of Justice contacted prison authorities and ordered a crackdown following the phone call in 2007.
During cross examination he accused Mr Whelan of refusing to deal with his personal requests, lying, interfering with his legal mail and giving preferential treatment to other prisoners in the segregation wing on punishment.
Mr Whelan denied the accusations and described himself as a “very proactive governor”.
He told Judge Gerard Haughton he had put a number of programmes and initiatives in place and abided by the prison regulations in dealing with inmates, whose cases were judged on an individual basis.
While he claimed many of his requests had been denied, Gilligan said he had recently been offered €1,000 compensation for clothes discarded following a search at his cell. Mr Whelan conceded the offer of €1,000 had been made.
During several questions on specific matters, Mr Whelan said he would have to refer to official files. Gilligan accused him of having a very poor memory, “I would say your official file is a bin with paper thrown in it,” he added.
When Gilligan complained about conditions in the prison, Judge Haughton reminded him that the court was not a prison visiting committee.
Gilligan claimed the governor had accused him of “getting me into trouble” after he gave an interview to hotpress journalist Jason O’Toole.
Mr Whelan told the court he would never knowingly allow a journalist into the prison to interview an inmate. He claimed it would not be permitted for security reasons.
By giving an interview, Gilligan said he wanted to prove his innocence and he referred to a similar interview given by, “Paddy Holland, lord have mercy on him”.
He also claimed his legal adviser was been excluded from the prison.
Mr Whelan said the particular individual named by Gilligan was not a recognised legal practitioner in Ireland and was welcome to attend on regular visits.
The case continues at Portlaoise District Court today.