Fennelly Fallout: Unprecedented events mark a dark chapter for Government

Having read the full 350-page Fennelly report, in which the Taoiseach and the Attorney General take a pasting, Cormac O’Keeffe concludes that it is clear politics took over from due process

THE justice system was in crisis by Sunday, March 23, 2014. The Government and the gardaí were tripping over controversies and bombshells: The GSOC bugging claims; the confidential recipient Oliver Connolly’s claims and dismissal; ongoing whistleblower revelations; and, of course, Garda commissioner Martin Callinan’s “disgusting” remarks.

Fresh outrage was sparked at those comments by Health Minister Leo Varadkar on Thursday, March 20, who called on the Garda boss to retract them. Mr Varadkar was backed by Joan Burton, Tánaiste Eamon Gilmore, Pat Rabbitte, and Ruairi Quinn.