Curtin 'too ill to attend hearing'

Lawyers for acquitted child porn Judge Brian Curtin will today appear before an Oireachtas committee with his medical records.

They will produce evidence to support claims that he is too ill to appear before the committee himself or to instruct his legal team.

If the records cannot be handed over due to patient confidentiality, it is understood doctors themselves will give evidence concerning Judge Curtin’s health.

The judge was acquitted of possessing child pornography in May when his trial collapsed as it emerged the Garda warrant used to search his Tralee home was out of date.

But since then, the 51-year-old has refused to co-operate with the Oireachtas and has become the subject of much speculation.

He spent two months in the St John of God’s psychiatric hospital, Dublin, and is understood to have been abroad.

Earlier this month he was charged with various offences relating to a drink driving charge at Tralee District Court, including his alleged refusal to provide a breath sample on May 8.

His solicitor Robert Pierse was granted an adjournment until December after producing medical records to support his application.

When moves were taken to impeach Judge Curtin in May on grounds of stated misbehaviour, lawyers wrote to the Government outlining that the Judge would respond “appropriately” to the investigation.

The joint Oireachtas committee was established in June when emergency legislation was passed to compel Judge Curtin to appear before it.

The seven strong group of four TDs and three Senators last met on August 25 and is looking into the circumstances of the charges brought against Judge Curtin, which he has always denied.

The Judge is also seeking damages against the Garda Commissioner for trespass. He is expected to argue that the material seized from his home, which includes a computer, should not be accessed as part of the committee’s investigation.