Courts Service issues apology regarding lack of wheelchair access

The Courts Service have issued an apology after a jury was discharged in a trial at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court partly because a wheelchair using juror was unable to gain access to jury boxes in The Four Courts building.

The trial, in which a new jury has been empanelled today, was delayed for several hours as court personnel and gardaí attempted to find a way for the man to negotiate several steps up to the jury box.

Judge Frank O’Donnell discharged the jury yesterday afternoon following an application on several grounds from defence counsel, Mr Fergal Kavanagh SC, which included the unsuitability of the court room for the juror.

Mr Kavanagh told Judge O’Donnell that "the situation was wholly unsatisfactory and I don't know who can be blamed" and suggested in future that there should be a ramp up the jury box steps for wheelchair users.

Prosecuting counsel, Ms Úna Ní Raifeartaigh BL, had earlier expressed concerns that the "dignity" of the juror should be preserved and that the man should not be made to feel different from the other jury members.

A statement issued by the Court Services yesterday said after being made aware of the issue, "the Courts Service unreservedly apologises. This should not have happened".

The statement said there were "two unique problems" in The Four Courts complex for jurors using wheelchairs.

Firstly that due to the number of trials and "due to the randomness of the jury selection process, it is impossible to know when and to which case a juror may be assigned".

Secondly, that despite The Four Courts complex having "many wheelchair ramps, chair lifts and full service elevators", there was a "paucity of accessible jury rooms/boxes in this 210-year-old building".

The statement said that where the Court Service was made aware of the "needs of a wheelchair user in advance, we make special arrangements for temporary solutions, in the remaining non universally accessible venues".

The Courts Service said that the new 22-courtroom criminal courts complex currently under construction will have "universal access", including jury boxes, for wheelchair users. The new complex on Infirmary Road is due to open next year and will host all of Dublin’s criminal trials.

The Four Courts complex will continue to be used for Supreme Court and High Court civil law cases. Juries are sometimes required in High Court cases such as defamation.