Barron family call for resignation of garda chief

THE family of the man whose death led to the Morris Tribunal yesterday called on Garda Commissioner Noel Conroy to resign for his handling of the case.

Richie Barron, 54, was killed in Raphoe, Co Donegal, in October 1996 in a suspected hit-and-run but the subsequent garda investigation into his death was found to be prejudiced and negligent.

Buncrana solicitor Paudge Dorrian, representing Mr Barron’s family, said they wanted the commissioner to quit.

“Remember, the commissioner that’s there now was the assistant commissioner in charge of crime and security (the garda intelligence section) when all this was going on. I’m speaking on their behalf and I’m calling for his resignation now.”

Mr Dorrian said the family had also been hurt by senior gardaí referring to Mr Barron as a drunken cattle dealer while giving evidence at the Morris Tribunal.

He said the only person who had treated the family with respect was Judge Frederick Morris.

“He has faced it and he has apologised. He has done it in his report and he has actually done it personally to Ms Barron. Why didn’t the commissioner come down to see Ms Barron?”

The move will increase the pressure on Mr Conroy, who oversaw the controversial internal investigations into garda corruption in Donegal.

As assistant commissioner in 2000, he concluded that the “facts and suspicions” established by the original Barron investigation were “largely accurate”.

In contrast, Judge Morris described the garda investigation as “prejudiced, tendentious and utterly negligent in the highest degree”.

A garda spokesman said Mr Conroy was standing by his original statement in response to the second Morris Tribunal report, in which he said he regretted that garda policy and procedures were not followed or adhered to in the garda investigation.

Mr Dorrian confirmed he had served papers on the family’s behalf to Minister for Justice Michael McDowell, the Garda Commissioner and the Attorney General, accusing them of negligence and dereliction of duty in their failure to ensure a proper investigation into Mr Barron’s death.