Court makes makes first ruling on new law in murder case

The Special Criminal Court has ruled for the first time on the use of new laws which were brought in last year to tackle gangland crime.

The court made a ruling on a legal issue which arose during the trial of a Belfast man for the murder of a taxi driver in Belfast last year.

Gerard Mackin was questioned by members of the Special Detective Unit after his arrest in Dublin last year under the Criminal Justice Act of 2007. This allows courts to draw inferences from the failure of suspects to answer questions in relation to their presence at a place related to a particular offence.

The new Act was brought in last year to give gardaí extra powers to deal with serious crime.

The court heard that Mackin replied "no comment" when questioned about his presence at the location where taxi driver Edward Burns was shot dead.

Mackin's counsel, Mr Paul Mc Dermott SC, submitted that the court could not draw inferences from Mackin's refusal to answer questions because the gardaí had not complied with the provisions of the 2007 Act by not briefing his solicitor on the questions they were about to put to him.

But Mr Justice Paul Butler, presiding at the non-jury court, said that Mackin was given a full explanation of the legislation by his solicitor and that the relevant sections were explained to him in ordinary language by the gardaí.

But the judge also pointed out that the court was merely holding that they were entitled to draw inferences from Mackin's refusal to answer questions, but whether they drew those inferences depended on the rest of the evidence.

The court has heard that Mr Burns, a 36-year-old father of five, died from a single shot fired at close range.

Gerard Mackin has denied the murder of Mr Burns, of Prospect Park, Belfast, at Bog Meadow, Falls Road, Belfast on March 12, last year.

He also denies the attempted murder of Mr Damien O'Neill (aged 25), the possession of a firearm with intent to endanger life and causing serious harm to Mr O'Neill on the same date.

Mackin, aged 26, a native of the Whiterock area of west Belfast, with an address at Raheen Close, Tallaght, Dublin, has opted for trial in the Republic under the Criminal Law Jurisdiction Act of 1976 which allows suspects to be tried in the Republic for alleged offences in Britain or Northern Ireland.

The court last month heard evidence over two days at Belfast Crown Court from a number of witnesses who were reluctant to travel to Dublin, including the main prosecution witness, Mr Damien O'Neill, who was himself shot twice during the incident but survived.

Mr O'Neill identified the accused Mackin as the man who shot Mr Burns and who then shot him (O'Neill.)

The trial continues tomorrow.