Three serving gardaí from Limerick who had been scheduled to go on trial for allegedly perverting the course of justice have been informed that all charges against them are to be withdrawn.
The Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions notified the solicitors representing the three officers that it will formally drop the charges at Limerick Circuit Criminal Court on March 25th, reports Breaking News.
The three gardaí had been suspended for six years while facing criminal charges arising from an investigation carried out by the Garda National Bureau of Criminal Investigation, based in Dublin.
The investigation centred on alleged improper garda interference in the handling of fixed charge penalty notices linked to ongoing or potential motoring offences, reports Breaking News.
The officers — Garda Peter O’Donnell, 52, Garda Paul Baynham, 37, and Garda Niall Deegan, 51, all attached to the Roads Policing Unit at Henry Street Garda Station in Limerick — have denied all allegations.
They are represented by solicitor Liz Hughes of Hughes Murphy Solicitors in Dublin, reports Breaking News.
In September 2024, the three men appeared before Limerick District Court facing a combined total of 33 charges alleging that, while serving as members of An Garda Síochána, they communicated with other gardaí in a way that had the tendency or intent to pervert the course of public justice between 2017 and 2019.
O’Donnell faced 14 counts, Baynham 10, and Deegan nine under the relevant legislation, reports Breaking News.
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Detective Inspector Mark Waters of the GNBCI told the court in September 2024 that he had arrested and charged all three men, adding that each accused “made no reply” to the charges.
He also told the court that the Director of Public Prosecutions had directed that the three men be tried on indictment at Limerick Circuit Criminal Court, reports Breaking News.
However, the DPP’s office informed their legal representatives on Wednesday that the accused would no longer face trial, as all charges are to be withdrawn.
Earlier this month, on March 2nd, Limerick Circuit Criminal Court heard that the prosecutions were facing significant delays due to resource constraints and budget overruns, reports Breaking News.
Prosecuting senior counsel Carl Hanahoe apologised to the court for the delays.
He said the prosecution was “not in a position to proceed” with the trials on that date, citing “budgetary overruns” and the time required for the GNBCI to arrange potential witnesses as contributing factors, reports Breaking News.
Hanahoe told Judge Colin Daly: “I have to apologise for (the delay).”
Senior Counsel John Byrne, representing Baynham and O’Donnell, and Senior Counsel James B Dwyer, representing Deegan, both applied to have the cases dismissed on March 2nd, reports Breaking News.
Byrne and Dwyer told the court their clients had been under investigation since 2019, suspended since 2020, and were still awaiting full disclosure of evidence from the prosecution.
Byrne described the situation facing his client as “highly unsatisfactory”, reports Breaking News.
Dwyer, in seeking to have the charges against Garda Deegan struck out, also referred to another case that had been dismissed due to the absence of a prosecuting garda in court.
He said his side had requested disclosure in 2024, received only partial material in 2025, and had heard “nothing” further despite repeated requests for full disclosure, reports Breaking News.
The judge said on March 2nd that he would “consider” striking out the cases against all three accused if the State failed to provide the requested disclosure within a reasonable timeframe, reports Breaking News.
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