Second murderer challenges life sentence

THE second of two convicted murderers began his legal High Court action yesterday against the Minister for Justice challenging the constitutionality of this country’s mandatory life sentence regime.

On February 10, 1997, Paul Lynch, aged 30, who is detained in Midlands Prison, Portlaoise, Co. Laois, pleaded guilty to the murder of Donegal pensioner William Campbell, 77, at Mr Campbell’s home in February 1995 and was sentenced to life imprisonment. He was arrested in September 1995 and charged with the killing.

Ms Justice Mary Irvine yesterday directed that Mr Lynch could attend the hearing today.

The court was told yesterday that Mr Lynch was killed when struck about seven or eight times over the head with a saucepan in the course of a robbery at his home.

Also challenging the mandatory life sentence is convicted murderer Peter Whelan of Ashsgrove, Underwood, Rochestown, Cork, who is serving a life sentence in Cork Prison for the murder of Nicola Sweeney, 20, a student at her home in Underwood House, Rochestown, in April 2002 when Whelan was 20 years of age.

He was jailed for life at the Central Criminal Court in December 2002.

Roger Sweetman SC for Lynch said yesterday that nobody had confronted the issue of mandatory life sentences for murder head on in any court here before.

Mr Sweetman submitted in a statement of claim that the life sentence breached the Constitution by interfering with the right of a judge to perform his judicial functions in a manner consistent with his independence under the Constitution.

In this particular case he submitted that all discretion or review of the facts were removed from the judge and the Court of Criminal Appeal by the Oireachtas and his judicial functions limited to imposing a sentence regardless.

He pointed out that by permitting a judge to hand down only one sentence regardless of factors or circumstances infringed article 38(1) of the Constitution because the sentence of life imprisonment was not in due course of law but rather was arbitrary and disproportionate.

It is also claimed that the sentence constitutes inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment which breached the European Convention on Human Rights.

Lawyers for the minister say in defence that Lynch is not entitled to rely on the provisions of the European Convention on Human Rights save to the extent provided for by the European Convention on Human Rights Act 2003.

They say the provisions of the act have no application to the plaintiff given that his imprisonment on foot of the judgement and the order of the Central Criminal Court predated the coming into force of the act, as he was imprisoned pursuant to a court order made on February 10, 1997.

It is also held by counsel for the minister that a mandatory life sentence for murder is in accordance with the requirements of the Constitution.