Former hospital consultant Michael Shine, who was one of the country's most eminent surgeons, was today acquitted of indecently assault teenage boys during the 1970s and 80s.
Shine, now aged 72 and with an address on Wellington Road, Dublin had pleaded not guilty to the ten counts of indecent assault on five males.
His trial lasted four weeks and each of the five men, now in their thirties and forties, gave evidence that Shine masturbated them either in Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital, Drogheda or at his private consulting rooms on Fair Street, Drogheda.
When the verdicts were read out there were cries of shock and angry tears from some of the complainants and their families.
The jury retired yesterday afternoon and spent the night in a hotel before returning with unanimous verdicts on each of the 10 counts yesterday afternoon.
Shine's vigorous defence included giving evidence himself in which he denied the allegations and he called a large number of doctors and nurses.
He had claimed that the allegations "were tied up with compensation, the malignancy of compensation" and the only people who thought he was a danger to the public were the press.
The first allegation was made in March 1994 by Mr A; the second was in June 1994 by Mr B. The other three men said they approached gardai after hearing a surgeon was under investigation by gardai.
The complainants had all been aged between 14 and 17 at the time they said they were assaulted and say that Shine was examining them on their own when they took place.
Although the case was first in the district court in 1996/97 a number of legal challenges including a judicial review and two applications to the Supreme Court delayed its going to trial until earlier this month.