Dundon contests 23-hour lock-up

Limerick man John Dundon has gone on hunger strike in prison as he fears an attempt to poison him.

Dundon, who was jailed two months ago for the murder of Garryowen rugby star Shane Geoghegan in Dooradoyle, Limerick, in 2008, is surviving on a diet of milk alone since Sept 19 last at Portlaoise Prison, where he is under 23-hour lock-up in a segregation unit.

Yesterday, the High Court heard how Dundon, who wants to challenge the 23-hour lock-up, at times feels suicidal and finds his situation as insufferable.

Dundon began his hunger strike on Sept 4 amid fears that members of a rival gang working in the prison kitchens were trying to poison him.

John and Desmond Dundon yesterday got permission from the High Court to bring a legal challenge to the decision to keep them in the segregation unit of Portlaoise Prison.

The brothers, along with 22-year-old fellow Limerick man Nathan Killeen, are also seeking a declaration that holding them in the segregation unit in close or solitary confinement without giving reason breaches their constitutional rights.

The trio also want a declaration that the application of an indeterminate period of solitary confinement to a prisoner is unlawful and unconstitutional.

In an affidavit to the court, solicitor Joseph Coonan said the fact that John Dundon is detained in Portlaoise Prision has created and continues to stoke tensions with a rival family in Limerick. John Dundon and the other men are detained in “the Block”, a segregation unit.

The daily regime, said Mr Coonan, involves a 23-hour lock-up where prisoners are confined to a cell, 10ft by 6ft. John Dundon sleeps two feet from an open toilet without a lid, and Mr Coonan said Dundon described how the noxious smell of sewerage from the toilet permeates the cell. There is a tap for water, but Dundon says the colour of the water is brown and not drinkable.

For one hour a day, John Dundon is allowed to walk around a small yard with his brother Desmond and Nathan Killeen.

Mr Coonan said Dundon is finding 23-hour lock-up extremely difficult and described his situation as “insufferable”.

He has also told how his client suffers from memory loss, bouts of confusion, and is depressed. Dundon has said he has suffered anxiety attacks and paranoia, and isolation has made him extremely nervous and awkward around other people, including his brother.

The solicitor said Dundon reported sleep interruption and fatigue and that he feels he is being subjected to psychological torture and at times feels suicidal.

Desmond Dundon, it is claimed, is experiencing significant physical and psychological effects arising from the lock-up regime.

Judge Peter Charleton granted leave for judicial review on several grounds. The case will come before the court again tomorrow.