Hubert Wine:JUDGE HUBERT Wine, who died on November 15th, was best known as a district judge, sitting mainly in Dún Laoghaire, Co Dublin, who upheld the rights of the marginalised and disadvantaged.
The most famous case that appeared before him was in 1990 and it involved a 15-year-old girl accused of assault. The girl was a suicide risk and a danger to herself and members of the public. The DPP sought to withdraw the charges against her and when Judge Wine realised this would mean her being released back on the streets he refused to allow the charges be withdrawn.
“I would like to stress that the poor unfortunate child cannot be blamed for the tragic background and the terrible sufferings and traumatic experiences she has suffered since she was 10,” he said.
He said he would not release her on to the streets to fend for herself “with nowhere to go and no one to help, love and care for her”. He rejected the attempt to drop charges (which would lead to her release) eight times, insisting that secure accommodation be found for her by the State.
He said he would not withdraw the charges until he got a response from the ministers for health, justice and education on providing suitable secure accommodation. He was “dismayed and very disturbed” by the fact that calls he made to the Departments of Education and Health for a safe place for the girl had not been responded to.
He anticipated the later work of High Court judge Mr Justice Peter Kelly in seeking to have the departments concerned provide a suitable place for such girls as an absolute priority.
All three departments denied responsibility, passing the buck between them, though they agreed, following Judge Wine’s intervention, to set up an inter-departmental committee.
Eventually the eastern health board (now part of the Health Service Executive) did appear before him to explain what it could do for the girl. The case revealed his courage and commitment to principle, as he was facing a possible challenge in the High Court by the DPP, which could have prompted his resignation.
“I am here to administer justice as well as the law. If I think hardship is being caused I have a say,” he said in a case where the collapsed insurance company PMPA sued a small investor. He said he was obliged by law to grant the company the order sought, but would not grant it its costs and set the maximum allowable period for the repayment of the loan.
He was born one of three children on April 3rd, 1922 into a comfortable Dublin Jewish family.
His father, Harry Wine, ran the family antique business, Louis Wine, on Grafton Street.
He attended Sandford Park School and defied his father, who wanted him to enter the family business, when he went to Trinity College Dublin to study law. He qualified as a solicitor and worked initially in the office of Herman Good, who was also Jewish.
This is credited with the development of his social conscience, as Herman Good had a large working class practice and also took controversial cases, including David Norris’s challenge to the law prohibiting homosexuality. Good was appointed to the District Court in 1966, despite earlier objections to having a Jew on the bench from John A Costello. When Herman Good retired in 1976 Hubert Wine was appointed to replace him.
His early years on the bench were marked by complaints about the leniency of his sentences.
However, he was considered by those who appeared before him to be courteous, fair and willing to listen to both sides as long as he felt necessary. He took copious notes, which were often sought by the lawyers in a case that moved to a higher court.
He was a keen sportsman, playing both golf and table tennis. He represented Ireland at the table tennis world championships in 1944. At an ecumenical sports service in 1987 he recalled that 42 Jews had represented Ireland in sport internationally. He was captain of Edmondstown Golf Club.
“His Judaism sits comfortably on his shoulders as an Irishman,” a friend told The Irish Times in 1990. He was very active in the Jewish community in Ireland, serving as chairman and president of the Jewish Representative Council of Ireland and honorary life-president of Dublin Hebrew Congregation.
He is survived by his sons Gary and Richard and his daughter Beverlie. His brother and sister pre-deceased him.
Hubert Wine: born April 4th, 1922; died November 15th, 2011