Comments on The Pensive Quill: Can Dolours Price Interviews Be Used In Court: A C...

AM- "Peter Geoghegan is a very good journalis...

2013-08-04T17:48:59.236+01:00

AM- "Peter Geoghegan is a very good journalist." Apologies for the late reply, I thought I had responded before now.

I wouldn't argue against the above statement as I wouldn't be familiar with his work. I have heard of him though and know he is held in high esteem. My comment wasn't meant as a personal slant.

All I meant was if you want to source legal opinion it makes sense to ask an expert in the specific legal field not someone outside of that profession. (Just to cut down on the margin of error, although as I said and as you agreed even experienced lawyers can get it wrong.)

Kerry was all for not letting the tapes go to Poli...

2013-07-23T13:10:41.940+01:00

Kerry was all for not letting the tapes go to Police service, But, Since being elected Secretary of state he seems to have washed his hands of them and seems to be doing what Hilary Clinton done when he wrote to her regarding the tapes, and got no reply.

Sen. Menendez asks secretary of State for help in release of IRA interviews

Ed, The PPS can say that evidence is admissible b...

2013-07-23T10:31:45.010+01:00

Ed,

The PPS can say that evidence is admissible but when furnished before a court the Judge might not agree.

If a judge were to accept judge it as being admissible -then at full Hearing its evidential weight is more fully scrutinised --especially against whatever other evidence is available --or in the absence of other evidence.

With no other independent or verifiable evidence I would imagine that DPrice's recordings might be used to draw inferences but not enough to convict beyond reasonable doubt which is the standard applied to all cases pursued by the PPS.

Call for British government to release war diaries relating to Jean McConville’s murder

itsjustmacker- I can only comment by betraying my ...

2013-07-21T01:22:24.085+01:00

itsjustmacker- I can only comment by betraying my lack of knowledge but I guess it's because the weight given to hearsay would depend on many factors like corroborating evidence, the veracity/accuracy of the source material, how many parts removed from the source the information is: is it secondary or primary.

I would suggest they would need much more than what is already available perhaps even more than the BC Tapes hold but if a criminal case fails to convince beyond reasonable doubt it is more likely a civil case will succeed on the balance of probabilities.

I'm Curious , If hearsay evidence is admissibl...

2013-07-20T21:25:18.742+01:00

I'm Curious , If hearsay evidence is admissible, Why have they not used Brendans and Dolour's interviews which are still freely available.
Because if it was Adams they were really after then they just need to use Brendan's and dolours Interviews.

To me , something is amiss.

When we were at college we were told that in a civ...

2013-07-20T21:01:47.687+01:00

When we were at college we were told that in a civil case most types of hearsay are permissible and in a criminal court there are exceptions to the general rule that they are not. One of these exceptions is that it is hearsay which is part of an admission or confession and an other exception is that the person is deceased.

So my point is that it would have been admissible even if Dolours was alive (part of a confession)and Ed's point stands that it is admissible (as Dolours is now deceased).

I can't be 100% since although I have referred to my text book, law can change quickly, certainly quicker than I can usually keep track of.

Simon, Peter Geoghegan is a very good journalist....

2013-07-20T20:42:17.004+01:00

Simon,

Peter Geoghegan is a very good journalist. I know when he initally wrote about it he must have quizzed me alone for what seemed like hours. He wanted more than a soundbite. He has given an opinion that many lawyers would agree with. I think it is a complex and grey area and while I certainly would not rule out what Ed has said on the matter, it is just not cut and dried. Certainly at the judicial review hearing in Belfast the judge said hearsay evidence is admissible.

I am surprised at the Sunday Business Post using j...

2013-07-20T20:09:47.443+01:00

I am surprised at the Sunday Business Post using journalists for legal opinion as even experienced lawyers can get things wrong. Lawyers are less likely to make mistakes regarding the law than journalists so why do newspapers constantly seek unreliable opinion?

I would hazard a guess that Dolours' evidence could have been used in a criminal court before her death as it is supposedly part of an admission or confession which is one of the exceptions to the rule that hearsay is inadmissable. It certainly could have been used in a civil court before her death.

I understand Ed's point though that now it falls under the deceased person's exception also so a criminal case can perhaps proceed with more ease.

Dáil Questions: Data Protection & the Boston College Case; HET jurisdiction

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Sinn Fein’s dismissal of Boston College tapes is utter hypocrisy

I read that piece on Ed's blog the other day a...

2013-07-19T22:52:59.202+01:00

I read that piece on Ed's blog the other day and just after heard about Stephen “Stippo” Rakes turning up dead.