Irish Examiner view: Cross-border complexities to our laws

Players and fans observe a tribute to the late  Bobby Charlton ahead of the Premier League match at Villa Park in Birmingham. Picture: Jacob King/PA

The case in Dublin involving an anonymised Irish entertainer who was cleared of child defilement charges that would have defined him as a sex offender for the rest of his life illustrates how an imperfect and, in some ways, unsatisfactory procedure can still contribute to the judicial process by allowing accusations to be heard and tested.

The defendant, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was found not guilty of three charges of sex with an underage schoolgirl following a relationship that commenced in 2010 after a meeting at the Oxegen music festival when she was 16. He was aged 27 at the time.