Definitive motive for deaths not identified

MAIN FINDINGS:THE REPORT into the deaths of a family of four in Monageer, Co Wexford, in 2007 has failed to find any single, definite motive behind their deaths.

The inquiry team says it believes a number of family, financial and personality-related factors contributed to the decision by Adrian and Ciara Dunne to end their lives and those of their children, five-year-old Leanne and three-year-old Shania.

The report, published yesterday by Minister for Children Barry Andrews, says that even if gardaí or social services had called to the Dunne family home during the weekend they died, it is unlikely the tragedy could have been averted, given Adrian and Ciara Dunne’s capacity to provide a plausible explanation for their “bizarre” funeral plans.

It says Adrian Dunne was the “driving force” behind the planning and execution of the deaths of Ciara Dunne and their two children, and there was no third party involvement.

Large sections of the published report are blacked out to protect the identity of people figuring in the investigation. The inquiry team says its terms of reference were to focus on the delivery of services rather than to find fault with individuals.

Adrian Dunne died by hanging on the weekend of April 20th-23rd, 2007. His wife Ciara died by ligature strangulation. Leanne and Shania died by smothering. The report says it was clear that the pair were planning the deaths of the family. It says Adrian Dunne frequently misinformed service providers by furnishing misleading information, including information about appointments.

Among the factors the report suggests may have contributed to the deaths are the death of Adrian Dunne’s father in April 2006 and the death by hanging of his brother James in March 2007, less than a month before the Monageer tragedy. Other factors were: Adrian Dunne’s “controlling and dominant influence” within the family; Ciara Dunne’s “docile, childlike nature”, which made her compliant and subservient to her husband’s wishes; Adrian Dunne’s ability in isolating his wife from her family; their mounting debts; and the option of a move to Liverpool no longer seeming feasible.

The report says gardaí, when they discovered the bodies of the Dunne family, should have taken immediate steps to notify their wider families of the tragic deaths.

It also says gardaí should have considered contacting Adrian Dunne’s family to advise them of the family’s visit to an undertaker shortly before their deaths. Before they died, the Dunne family had visited an undertaker to arrange how the couple and their children would be buried.

The report calls for the provision of a national out-of-hours social work service to ensure an appropriate response to serious child protection and welfare concerns. It also recommends greater training for frontline staff, a review of management structures in the HSE and better mechanisms for the early identification of children at risk.

The inquiry, set up in June 2007, began its work in January 2008 following the completion of a Garda report into the incident.

Mr Andrews received the report last October, although extracts of it have been circulated to relevant bodies and family members over recent months for legal reasons.