A legal challenge to halt his murder trial until his rights are ensured has been initiated in the High Court by John Mulrooney Sugrue, a 19-year-old charged with murder. Sugrue, from Manorfield Green, Clonee, Dublin, stands accused of killing Aaron Keating in Ongar on June 13, 2023.
At the time of the alleged crime, Mulrooney Sugrue was underage. Now, as he awaits his case in the Central Criminal Court, represented by Seamus Clarke SC, he declares that being sentenced to mandatory life imprisonment if found guilty would be the only possible outcome for the judge. It is pointed out that the court cannot consider the fact that he was a minor when the alleged crime occurred.
Sugrue contends that the legal system’s readiness to give a determinate sentence or review to someone in his position is not just a violation of his constitutional rights but also breaches his rights under the European Convention on Human Rights. He asserts that the current legal status has negatively impacted both himself and his lawyers’ ability to give him appropriate counsel.
He cites that the 2019 UN Committee on the Rights of the Child proposed that all types of life jail sentences, including undefined sentences, for crimes committed by individuals under 18 years old should be abolished. This situation has arisen, he argues, not due to a deliberate decision by the Oireachtas, but because of a legal oversight.
Sugrue insists it’s crucial to tackle the concerns brought up in this lawsuit before he is compelled to enter his plea regarding the charge.
Mr Mulrooney Sugrue is taking legal action against the Director of Public Prosecutions, the Attorney General, and the country of Ireland. Among his numerous requests and declarations, he insists on ceasing further prosecution until proper sentencing provisions are set up, considering the fact that he was a minor at the time of the suspected crime. He is also seeking compensation for a supposed violation of his constitutional rights.
He is demanding declarations specifically pointing at a segment of the Children’s Act 2001 for lacking inclusivity as it does not allow for the implementation of a defined sentence or the revision of a life sentence for a suspect who was a child during the commission of a murder crime.
The proceedings also involve the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission as a notified party. The case was presented to Justice Niamh Hyland on a previous Monday. Upon an ex parte hearing, she granted Mr Sugrue the consent to proceed with his challenge. Additional related cases, including this matter, are set to be discussed in the court later this month.
Two other judicial review applications conveying comparably legal points were earlier presented during the month. Noah Musueni from Corduff Park, Blanchardstown, Dublin, and David Amah from Hazel Grove, Portrane Road, Donabate, Dublin, initiated these applications. Both now 18, they were minors when they allegedly murdered Tristan Sherry in a Dublin restaurant on the previous Christmas Eve and are awaiting trial before the Special Criminal Court.