The Minister for Justice, Mr O'Donoghue, was yesterday urged to carry out a review of the operations of the State Pathologist's office following a delay of over 30 hours in carrying out post mortems into the death of French couple, Louis and Chantal Bergeron.
Mr Batt O'Keeffe, a Fianna Fail Cork South Central ail TD, said the 30-hour delay was inexplicable, given the appointment of an Assistant State Pathologist to assist Dr John Harbison.
"We already had the delay in the post mortem on Sophie Toscan du Plantier in west Cork, where rigor mortis set in and the exact time of death couldn't be established, with consequences for the investigation.
"Now we have this delay - again involving French nationals - it certainly doesn't do our image in France any good.
"They really must be questioning the priority we attach to investigating the deaths of foreign nationals here," he said.
Mr O'Keeffe said the delay of over 30 hours in the Bergeron case could not be justified particularly when the former acting assistant state pathologist, Dr Margaret Bolster, was available in Mallow, less than 45 miles from where the bodies were found in Clogheen.
He wanted to know whether any attempt was made to contact Dr Bolster to carry out the Bergeron post mortems.
"I am very dissatisfied with operational matters within the State Pathologist Department - to my mind this case highlights again the continuing need to have an assistant state pathologist based in Munster," he said.
The fact that gardai were not looking for anyone else in connection with the Bergeron killings did not excuse the delay, Mr O'Keeffe said, and he claimed it showed administrative problems in the State Pathologist office had not been properly addressed.