LAST UPDATE | 19 Sep
VICTIMS OF PAEDOPHILE Michael Shine have been told that files have been sent to the Director of Public Prosecutions after new allegations against the former surgeon were reported to Gardaí.
A man who alleges he was abused by Michael Shine in the early 1990s told The Journal that he made a statement to gardaí last year and that he was told two weeks ago that a file has now gone to the DPP to decide if Shine should be charged.
He was also told that Shine, now aged 93, has not yet been interviewed as part of this recent criminal investigation.
Victim support and advocacy organisation Dignity4Patients confirmed that it is aware of nine cases where files have now gone to the DPP, following a protracted delay because gardaí were “waiting to send them in bulk”.
Its clients have been receiving phone calls from gardaí in recent weeks advising them that files in relation to their complaints have been sent to the DPP.
CEO of Dignity4Patients Adrienne Reilly gave The Journal her reaction to the development.
“(I am) thankful prosecution is still being considered by DPP, but have a number of concerns including the fact they did not prosecute the last round of applications for prosecution, due to a Court of Appeal Judgement from 2021.”
She said that despite this she would “strongly encourage victims to come forward”.
“We (Dignity4Patients) can support them through civil, or criminal process, counselling services and also just to report it to us in confidence if that is all they want to do, many victims have done that.”
Shine’s name has long been associated with legal battles about the many allegations against him.
He was first accused of abuse by a whistleblower in 1995 and charged with indecent assault in 1996. Legal issues delayed any trial relating to those charges from starting until 2003. He was then acquitted.
Two more trials, in 2017 and 2019, saw him found guilty of assaults against nine boys. More charges led to another protracted legal saga, culminating in the Court of Appeal ruling that “cumulative factors” – including Shine’s age and health, and a ‘misstep’ by the Director of Public Prosecutions – meant the case was in a “wholly exceptional category where it would be unjust to put the appellant on trial”.
In November 2017, guilty verdicts on three counts of assaulting two teenage patients on dates between 1974 and 1976 were handed down by a jury.
However, he was granted bail pending an appeal against the conviction.
Shine was eventually jailed for four years in 2019 following a separate case for abusing seven boys in his care over a period of three decades and was released in February 2022 after serving three years. Since then he has lived in Dublin 4.
Adrienne Reilly said that while she is keeping a close watch on developments with ongoing criminal investigations, the organisation is actively pushing for a public inquiry into the matter.
“Victims with the support of D4P are currently in the throes of lobbying politicians for a Commission of Investigation into Michael Shine, which will in fact look at the role of all institutions and who knew what about his abuse,” she said.
“There is an appetite now for government to finally give all victims equality of treatment and have a proper Commission of Investigation into sexual abuse in Ireland.”
Yesterday, Taoiseach Simon Harris told the Dáil that Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly has consulted the Attorney General on the possibility of publishing a sealed review into Shine’s abuse.
A 2009 review carried out by retired High Court judge T.C. Smyth has never been made public.
When asked today by The Journal if the government will make a decision on publishing the 2009 review ahead of an election being called, Minister Donnelly said he would expect so.
He said he has met with the Attorney General on it and is now working through some of the considerations.
“My default is transparency, so my default is publish,” the minister said.
“It’s not a question of should we publish? For me, the default is we will publish, are there reasons why we shouldn’t or are there redactions that have to be made or are there parties named in the report who might want to be consulted with ahead of time? So we’re working through a lot of that,” he said.
It followed comments from Labour leader Ivana Bacik and Louth Fine Gael TD Fergus O’Dowd who both asked the Taoiseach if he would commit to the establishment of a commission of investigation.
Associate Professor at the School of Law and Government in Dublin City University James Gallen explained that it is possible for criminal proceedings to run parallel to a commission investigation.
He said: “The Commission of Investigation Act 2004 provides that evidence given to that Commission shall not be admissible in civil or criminal proceedings.
“As a result, evidence gathered by any Commission would have to be gathered again, including the provision of survivor testimony, for any Garda investigation into related criminal matters
“Commissions of investigation are, however, able to request and compel evidence from State sources, including relevant criminal investigations. As a result a criminal proceeding can run parallel to a commission investigation.
“Where ongoing criminal investigations or proceedings exist, they may impact what the Commission seeks to investigate or what information it will include in its published reports. For instance, the Murphy Report into child sexual abuse in the Dublin Archdiocese was originally released with some material redacted and later published.”
An Garda Síochána was contacted for comment.
With reporting from Jane Matthews
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