Mother of murdered Limerick boxer Kevin Sheehy challenges killer's prison transfer
Logan Jackson of Longford Road Coventry, England. Jackson was convicted of Kevin Sheehy's murder by a jury at the Central Criminal Court last December and sentenced to life imprisonment. Picture: Paul Beard / courtesy of the Coventry Observer.
A High Court challenge brought by the mother of murdered Limerick boxer Kevin Sheehy aimed at preventing her son's killer being transferred to a UK prison has been adjourned after lawyers for the minister for justice agreed to freeze the move until the action has been determined.
Ms Justice Siobhan Phelan was told on Thursday afternoon by Ann Marie Lawlor SC for the minister that her client wants the action brought by Tracey Tully, whose 20-year-old son was killed at Hyde Road, Limerick, on July 1, 2019, heard as soon as possible.
The Irish champion boxer died after being repeatedly struck by a vehicle driven by Logan Jackson of Longford Road Coventry, England. Jackson was convicted of Mr Sheehy's murder by a jury at the Central Criminal Court last December and sentenced to life imprisonment.
Following his conviction, 31-year-old Jackson applied to Justice Minister Helen McEntee for a transfer from Ireland to a prison in the UK, where he will serve out his sentence.
Jackson's application was successful.
In judicial review proceedings against the minister for justice, Ms Tully has challenged that decision and seeks an order from the court quashing the transfer.
In her action, she claims that if the transfer goes ahead, she fears she will not have any say, nor be able to make any submissions to the UK authorities when Jackson applies for parole.
She claims if the transfer goes ahead any decision on a parole application by her son's killer would be in the hands of the authorities in another jurisdiction.
She claims the minister's decision to allow the transfer to go ahead is unconstitutional and an "abdication of the Irish State's responsibility to determine when a person serving a life sentence may be paroled."
In her action, she seeks declarations including that the proposed transfer breaches her rights under the 2017 Victim of Crime Act and was made outside of the minister's powers under the 2019 Parole Act.
She further seeks a declaration that the decision to transfer Jackson is unconstitutional as it removed the jurisdiction for sentencing Jackson from the Irish State and handed it over to another state.
The matter came before the High Court on Wednesday when Ms Tully's lawyers were directed to make the application for leave to bring the challenge on notice to the minister.
Her lawyers came to court seeking a stay on the transfer, as they had believed Jackson's move was imminent.
When the case returned before the court on Thursday, Ms Lawlor said the minister was seeking an adjournment to ascertain precisely what attitude her client will take in relation to Ms Tully's action.
The minister, counsel said, wanted the matter dealt with as soon as possible.
Counsel said the minister had agreed that Jackson would not leave the jurisdiction until the action has been determined.
Ms Justice Phelan agreed to adjourn the case for a week.
The judge also directed that Jackson be made a notice party to the proceedings, given he is affected by the outcome of the case.
Ms Tully's counsel, Arthur Griffin Bl, instructed by Mark Murphy solicitors, said his side was not objecting to the adjournment, nor having Jackson added as a notice party to the action.
Counsel said his side welcomed the fact that Jackson would not be moved until the action has been heard.
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