Prisoner challenges opening of letters to solicitor

A prisoner has taken High Court proceedings challenging the practice by the prison authorities of reading correspondence between him and his solicitor.

Joseph Barry was convicted of murder in England in November 1990 and was transferred to Mountjoy Prison in late 1998. He is now detained in Castlerea Prison, Co Roscommon.

Yesterday he secured leave to take judicial review proceedings in which he is seeking a number of declarations that the reading of correspondence with his solicitor is a breach of his constitutional rights to privacy, freedom of expression and legal assistance.

He is also seeking declarations that it is a breach of his rights to legal professional privilege, to confidentiality of client-solicitor correspondence and legitimate expectations.

He wants further declarations that Rule 63 of the Rules for the Government of Prisons, 1947, which provides for the opening of correspondence to prisoners, is unconstitutional, invalid and in excess of the powers of the Minister for Justice.

He also secured leave to apply for orders, applicable pending the outcome of the judicial review action, restraining the authorities, the Minister for Justice and the State from further reading or interfering with his correspondence.

He contends that the fact that he has other judicial review proceedings pending against the prison authorities makes the censorship of legal correspondence by those authorities a breach of the privilege that attaches to communications between a client and solicitor.

He referred to some correspondence with his solicitor which was opened and stamped by the prison censor. His solicitors had drawn the attention of the prison governor to this and were told in a written reply from the governor last February that any letters over which legal privilege was sought should be enclosed in a cover letter to the governor, who would ensure they were not censored.

However, he said, the prison censor had later stamped another of his letters to his solicitors, although that letter was enclosed in an envelope marked "legal correspondence subject to legal privileges".

His solicitors had last March received a letter from the governor of Castlerea Prison saying he retained the right to censor post "at his discretion" and outlining the procedure for a prisoner to send a letter to his solicitor.

The procedure involved the letter being shown to an assistant chief officer who checked that it was being sent to a bonafide firm of solicitors. The ACO then perused the letter to ensure it was legal correspondence, checked the contents of the envelope and placed the letter in an envelope which was sealed in front of the prisoner.

Mr Barry said he objected to his legal correspondence being read by prison officers.