Courts

‘Curious development’ in Regency murder trial where document disclosed to defence remains to be resolved

Prosecution tells court document primarily concerning Gerard Hutch disclosed to the defence

File image of a member of the Garda Armed Support Unit on duty at the Special Criminal Court as the trial of Gerry Hutch for the murder of David Byrne continues. File photograph: Collins Courts

Alison O'Riordan
Thu Jan 12 2023 - 16:52

“No further steps” will be taken by parties in the Regency Hotel murder trial in relation to a “curious development” which saw a document disclosed to the defence, prosecution counsel has told the Special Criminal Court.

Defence counsel Brendan Grehan SC, for accused man Gerard Hutch, told the non-jury court on Thursday that “the curious matter will have to wait for another day to be resolved”.

Presiding judge Ms Justice Tara Burns said the court knew nothing about this curious matter. On Wednesday when the non-jury court returned following the Christmas break, Sean Gillane SC, prosecuting, informed the three judges that “a curious development” had arisen which resulted in the “generation of a document” that had been disclosed to the defence and primarily concerned Mr Hutch. He added that the matter had to be looked into.

Gerard ‘The Monk’ Hutch (59), last of The Paddocks, Clontarf, Dublin 3, denies the murder of Kinahan Cartel member David Byrne (33) during a boxing weigh-in at the Regency Hotel on February 5th, 2016.

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Mr Hutch’s two co-accused – Paul Murphy (61), of Cherry Avenue, Swords, Co Dublin and Jason Bonney (52), of Drumnigh Wood, Portmarnock, Dublin 13 have pleaded not guilty to participating in or contributing to the murder of Mr Byrne by providing access to motor vehicles on February 5th, 2016.

The Special Criminal Court will rule on Friday on the admissibility of CCTV evidence against Mr Murphy, who is accused of helping a criminal gang murder Mr Byrne at the Regency Hotel in Dublin almost seven years ago.

CCTV footage of the movements of a Toyota Avensis which the State says belongs to Mr Murphy has previously been shown to the court. Submissions were made on Thursday by Mr Murphy’s lawyer during a voir dire, or “trial within a trial”, to resolve a dispute over the admissibility into evidence of the CCTV footage.

Mr Murphy’s Toyota Avensis taxi is alleged to have been part of a convoy that parked at St Vincent’s GAA club grounds before the shooting and then transported an assailant after a Ford transit van was abandoned.

It is the prosecution’s case that a silver Ford transit van containing six people left the Regency Hotel after the shooting, including three people dressed in tactical garda clothing.

The raiders then made good their escape by using a number of parked vehicles at St Vincent’s GAA club.

Mr Gillane said in his opening address that “an integral part of the operation” which led to Mr Byrne’s death was the means by which the tactical team escaped, which is central to the case of Mr Bonney and Mr Murphy.

In his submissions on Thursday, Bernard Condon SC, defending Mr Murphy, said that there were seven sources of CCTV footage in relation to his client and that the two requirements under the Data Protection Act 1993 are that the systems have to be registered with the Data Protection Commissioner and for notice to be given that there was a recording in place. “There is no evidence of that,” he added.

The barrister said the recording of data by an unregistered CCTV system was a criminal offence. Mr Condon said the CCTV breached the accused’s privacy rights.

In reply, Mr Gillane said this argument had not been accepted by the Special Criminal Court, the Central Criminal Court or the Circuit Court and that there was good reason for this.

He said there was a high constitutional imperative of long lineage to require gardaí to seize evidence. He argued that the Supreme Court had been very critical in recent cases of gardaí who had ignored this material and that “the highest court in the land” has said that there is a duty on gardaí “to go out and get this footage”.

The lawyer added that the CCTV footage was admissible unless there was an identifiable exclusionary rule requiring the court to exclude it.

The prosecution counsel submitted that the privacy right did not appear to be “tethered” to anything recognised by the court as a valid privacy right. In summary, Mr Gillane said the CCTV footage that the State was seeking to put before the court was “manifestly relevant”, capable of being material and capable of being probative.

Counsel asked the court to reject Mr Condon’s application.

John Fitzgerald SC, for Mr Bonney, asked for two CCTV clips recorded on February 5th, 2016 to be played to the court. One was from outside Mr Bonney’s Portmarnock home, showing a flat back truck reversing towards the house at 11.38am before leaving the estate.

The other was at Trinity Credit Union on Newbrook Road in Donaghmede, where Mr Fitzgerald said a truck was seen at 1.53pm and 2.31pm. The court has previously heard David Byrne was shot dead at 2.32pm.

The trial will continue on Friday before Ms Justice Burns sitting with Judge Sarah Berkeley and Judge Grainne Malone.

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