Enoch Burke’s mother and sister will learn next week whether they are to be jailed or fined after allegations of contempt of court.
Martina Burke and Ammi Burke appeared before the High Court in Dublin on Wednesday, having previously been removed from the same courtroom during a hearing last Friday, reports Breaking News.
That earlier hearing related to a temporary injunction sought by Mr Burke against a Disciplinary Appeals Panel (DAP) reviewing the decision to dismiss him from Wilson’s Hospital School.
Mr Burke had also been taken out of the court earlier that day and was later returned to Mountjoy Prison, reports Breaking News.
On Wednesday, Mr Justice Brian Creegan told both women they could make submissions in their defence and warned that a finding of contempt could result in imprisonment or financial penalties.
During a forceful address, Martina Burke shouted, banged the desk in front of her and brandished a copy of the Irish Constitution towards the bench, reports Breaking News.
She described her son as an “upright, genuine, sincere, godly teacher” and asserted that he had been “denied his constitutional rights”.
She also said there was “blood dripping from the hands of the judiciary” over her son’s imprisonment, reports Breaking News.
Mr Justice Creegan responded: “You know perfectly well he is not in prison for his beliefs, he is in prison for trespass,” reports Breaking News.
Ammi Burke said she “won’t sit silently by while my brother’s constitutional rights are being denied”.
In reply, Mr Justice Creegan told her that, as a solicitor, she should understand that “it is completely unacceptable” to interfere with court proceedings and that “you know perfectly well the rules of representation”, reports Breaking News.
Six members of the Burke family were present in court for the hearing, while Enoch Burke followed proceedings via video link.
The ongoing legal dispute between the board of management of the Co Westmeath school and Mr Burke stems from events in 2022, when the then-principal requested that a student be addressed by a new name and pronoun, reports Breaking News.
Mr Burke, an Evangelical Christian who taught German and history at the school, has repeatedly argued that the directive was unconstitutional and conflicted with his right to express his religious beliefs.
He remains in Mountjoy Prison for contempt of court in relation to breaches of orders prohibiting him from trespassing at the school.
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