Watchdog criticises Mountjoy death probe

THE appointment of a former Justice Department official to investigate last week’s murder of Gary Douch in Mountjoy Prison has been criticised by the Inspector of Prisons, Mr Justice Dermot Kinlen.

He feels the investigation will not be sufficiently independent as a result of Justice Minister Michael McDowell appointing Michael Mellett to probe the killing.

Mr Mellett is a former deputy secretary of the department.

No third party has been appointed to take part in the investigation.

In a statement issued to the press, Mr Justice Kinlen said he was “mystified as to why a former deputy secretary of the Department of Justice, who had responsibility for prisons within the department, was given the task of investigating the matter by the minister”.

Fine Gael justice spokesman Jim O’Keeffe said the inquiry needs to “be seen to be independent”.

“It is quite inappropriate to have someone appointed by the minister who is a former official of the minister’s department,” said Mr O’Keeffe.

“The first question that Mr McDowell needs to answer is why Judge Kinlen, as prisons inspector, wasn’t asked to carry out the inquiry. He would surely be the natural choice. Mr McDowell needs to answer those concerns.”

Mr Kinlen’s report on prison conditions for 2005-2006 was given to Mr McDowell in April, but has yet to be released to the public. It is expected to be highly critical.

Gary Douch was beaten to death by a fellow inmate in holding cells in the basement of Mountjoy Prison last week.

Amongst the issues looked at by the inquiry will be how his killer, who has a history of extreme violence, was not separated from other prisoners.

Prison officers have described conditions in Mountjoy as “medieval” and say under-resourcing and overcrowding are rampant in the country’s prisons.

The concerns over the appointment comes amid a growing crisis within the prison system.

Last week, the Prison Officers’ Association said its members no longer felt safe working in Mountjoy and described the atmosphere amongst inmates as “tense”.

It also emerged that the Department of Justice has been aware of serious problems within the prison system for months.

The department could not be contacted for comment yesterday.