The Dublin City Coroner has called on the Oireachtas to urgently reform legislation which yesterday precluded him from taking additional medical evidence in a case where a child died after he was stabbed by another child.
Dublin City Coroner's Court yesterday resumed the hearing of the inquest into the death of Jonathan Kelly (12), Ocean View, Wicklow town, who died at Our Lady's Hospital for Sick Children, Crumlin, on September 22nd last year. The inquest previously heard evidence that the child had been stabbed in the back with a knife following a row with another child over a supermarket trolley on September 21st.
His left kidney was punctured by the knife and Jonathan subsequently died from shock and internal bleeding. The wound was stitched by a local GP before Jonathan was transferred to Loughlinstown hospital and then to Crumlin. The GP who treated him; another doctor at the same practice; the consultant who operated on Jonathan at Crumlin hospital and the State Pathologist, Prof John Harbison, all gave evidence to the inquest on October 25th last.
However, last week the Supreme Court ruled that, under the provisions of the existing Coroners' Act 1962, the coroner may not take evidence from more than two medical witnesses.
Dublin City Coroner Dr Brian Farrell adjourned the inquest on the previous occasion to call doctors from Loughlinstown hospital. This was necessary, he believed, to provide a full narrative of the events between the time Jonathan was stabbed and the time he died. There is no suggestion of any improper treatment by doctors or staff at Loughlinstown.
Dr Farrell said that due to the recent Supreme Court ruling in the case of the East Coast Area Health Board v the Coroner for the City of Dublin, he could not hear the doctors, even though they were present and willing to give evidence.
Mr Michael Conlon, for a number of the doctors, said the Act, "for a number of reasons is creaking at the seams and requires to be reformed". However, he agreed the coroner had exceeded his quota of medical witnesses.
Mr Conor Bowman BL, for the Kelly family, said it was unsatisfactory that the family should be "robbed" of a vital part of the evidence. Mr Bowman asked the jury not to bring in a verdict in the circumstances. The inquest had been adjourned previously, he said, because the coroner believed the information to be inadequate.
Mr Bowman suggested the coroner state a case to the High Court, but Dr Farrell said he did not have the power to do this.
After extensive legal argument, the jury initially said it was not in a position to continue with a verdict. Following further instructions from the coroner, in which he put to them the possibility of either an open verdict, a verdict of death by misadventure or a simple narrative finding of the facts of the child's death, the jury opted to make a narrative finding.
It found Jonathan Kelly was pronounced dead at Our Lady's Hospital, Crumlin, on September 22nd and that he died from shock and haemorrhage due to a single stab wound to the left kidney, which was inflicted by a third party. The jury also made a recommendation that "in future, all medical evidence should be admitted as the coroner sees fit".