Publications fined for contempt of court

Three publications have been found in contempt of court and fined for their coverage of the Brian Murphy manslaughter trial.

The Irish Star on Sunday was today fined €20,000 after being found guilty of contempt of court in its coverage of the Brian Murphy manslaughter trial.

The Irish Examiner was fined €1,000 and the UCD College Tribune €250 for articles published during the trial process.

The Star on Sunday’s article, published on January 25, made reference to the fact that two of the four boys who stood trial, Dermot Laide and Sean Mackey, were on legal aid.

Judge Michael White told Dublin’s Circuit Criminal Court he accepted the matter was one of public interest but said he was in no doubt that it was a serious contempt of court.

He expressed frustration that the article was published just three days after the media was warned about its coverage of the trial.

“I said at the time that comments on the accused persons were absolutely and utterly reprehensible,” he said.

The court had heard that “trouble was brewing” regarding press publicity, and reporters were warned to “draw well back behind the line”.

Judge White said this particular article had certainly implied that it was unusual for Mackey and Laide to apply for legal aid based on their personal circumstances.

He said the decision to publish the article at such a sensitive time when he, as trial judge, had taken the time to warn the media about the seriousness of the case, was a serious criminal contempt of court.

“Public interest did not warrant its publication at that time,” he said.