Family of murdered woman left angry by DPP decision

LATE on the evening of April 11, 1998, Aisling McCarthy, grieving over the sudden death of her mother hours earlier, was told the 47-year-old had been murdered.

Joan McCarthy, a grandmother, had been found dead in her bed early that morning and it appeared she had been strangled. A murder investigation was launched from Coolock Garda Station.

Months later, Aisling's boyfriend Brian Farrell was arrested and charged with Mrs McCarthy's murder. On the cusp of his trial last July, the Director of Public Prosecutions requested the court enter a nolle prosequi and the accused man walked away.

It left the McCarthy family, including Aisling, Joan's husband Charlie and mother Brigid, baffled and angry. They remain so, particularly after a coroner's jury ruled this week the grandmother was unlawfully killed.

They asked for a reason why the prosecution was discontinued, but have been given none. Meanwhile, a killer remains at large.

"We are still seeking answers about what was decided from those who think they know best and, until we have them, neither my family nor I will rest," said Aisling.

The family's solicitor, Michael Finucane, believe this was an example of a case where the decision to drop the prosecution should be explained.

"The bottom line is that the most important persons in this whole situation are the family and they want answers," said Mr Finucane.

The office of the DPP, James Hamilton, says it is precluded from giving reasons behind its decisions. The office cites a 1994 Supreme Court judgment, which ruled that if the DPP did so in one case, it would have to in all.

Yet, the Supreme Court ruled in 2002 that, in a case where the DPP first decided not to prosecute and then changed his mind, the reasons for the decision had to be given to the defendant.

Gardaí involved in a case are often told the reasoning behind decisions, so that mistakes are not repeated.

No one apart from the DPP, his senior counsel and some members of the gardaí know whether mistakes were made in the McCarthy case. The system has ruled that Joan McCarthy's family has no right to know.

This situation may be questionable under European Convention law, Mr Finucane argues.

The solicitor is no stranger to controversial cases. He also represents the sister of Sylvia Shields who, along with Mary Callinane, was killed in 1997 in what became known as the Grangegorman murders.

The late Dean Lyons was charged with the murders, but the charge was subsequently dropped. Convicted double killer Mark Nash is said to have confessed to the killings, yet has not been charged. No reasons have been given as to why charges against Dean Lyons were dropped or why Nash has not been charged.

But Aisling McCarthy argues: "The system has failed us and left my family hanging on for justice."