A man accused of murdering his two sisters and brother in Tallaght was too sick to face a court hearing on Thursday which heard that prosecutors were awaiting postmortem reports.
Lisa Cash, 18, and her eight-year-old twin brother and sister, Christy and Chelsea Cawley, died after they were attacked and stabbed at their family home in Rossfield Avenue, in the Brookfield area, in the early hours of September 4th last year.
Gardaí from Tallaght station, supported by armed detectives and members of an armed support unit, responded. Officers used non-lethal devices to effect an arrest.
They charged Andy Cash, 24, also from Rossfield Avenue, with the three murders, and he was remanded in custody by a late special sitting of the District Court on September 5th. An order was made for him to have a psychological assessment in prison.
The Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) has directed trial on indictment in the Central Criminal Court. But, the State must complete a book of evidence and serve it on him before a trial order is granted.
He was due to appear again at Cloverhill District Court on Thursday.
Judge Cephas Power noted that the Prison Service had sent a sick note, and the accused could not face court.
State solicitor Clare Barry informed the judge that the book of evidence still needed to be completed, and the postmortem reports were still awaited.
Due to the accused not being present, the judge could only adjourn for up to two weeks.
He remanded him in continuing custody in his absence to appear on February 2nd.
During his first hearing, Garda Rob Whitty gave evidence of arrest, charge and caution. He said he charged the accused with three counts of murder.
“His reply to the charge after caution was ‘no comment’ to each charge, and he was handed a true copy of each charge sheet,” Garda Whitty had said.
The District Court cannot grant bail in a murder case which requires a High Court application.