Carmody trial brought to an end

THE trial of former Clare GP Paschal Carmody, who is accused of defrauding the families of two cancer patients, has collapsed.

The trial was brought to an end yesterday afternoon when reports of the trial, which appeared in both the Irish Examiner and the Irish Times — and supplied to both newspapers by a freelance journalist — were cited for possible contempt by defence counsel Patrick Marrinan.

Mr Carmody, aged 63, of Ballycuggeran in Killaloe, Co Clare, had pleaded not guilty to nine charges of obtaining more than €16,000 by deception or under false pretences from the families of two terminally ill cancer patients under the pretence that he could cure their cancer.

Judge Donagh McDonagh decided to withdraw the case from the jury after Mr Marrinan brought to the attention of the court two newspaper reports which he said compromised Mr Carmody’s chances of a fair trial.

The reports contained matters which were discussed in the absence of the jury at Wednesday’s sitting of the trial and should not, therefore, have been reported.

After considering the applications made by both prosecution and defence senior counsels, presiding Judge Donagh McDonagh said the matters complained of had “breached all the conventional rules whereby matters dealt with in the absence of the jury are never reported. It amounts to a contempt of court”.

“The Irish Examiner and The Irish Times have so far been accurate in their coverage, but today’s coverage departs from that coverage,” Judge McDonagh said.

Judge McDonagh then directed that the editors of both publications or their legal representatives be brought before the court to explain why they should not be cited for contempt of court.

The judge then excused the jury and adjourned the case.