DPP appeals refusal of challenge to IRA miscarriage of justice declaration

The Director of Public Prosecutions has appealed a High Court decision that upheld the Special Criminal Court's declaration that Michael Connolly, from County Louth, was a victim of miscarriage of justice. Mr Connolly had spent fourteen months in custody following conviction on an IRA membership charge in 2017, based on observations of him driving in convoy in December 2014 in Donegal. His conviction was overturned on appeal in 2018, and he was acquitted following retrial in 2019. The Special Criminal Court later found that belief evidence given by a senior garda breached the "double-counting" rule, as it was based partly on material contained in the book of evidence. The DPP contends the miscarriage finding was unsustainable, arguing there remained a proper evidential basis for prosecution. The Court of Appeal reserved judgement on whether the procedural error constituted a grave defect in administration of justice.