MORRIS TRIBUNAL:THE SEVENTH report of the Morris tribunal has concluded that the McBrearty family and their associates were subject to Garda harassment after the death of cattle dealer Richie Barron in Raphoe, Co Donegal, in October 1996.
The report has also concluded that the now defunct Garda Complaints Board was ineffective. It had neither the power nor resources to deal with the issues on the scale of those which emerged in the Garda's Donegal division.
The tribunal has found that the transfer to Raphoe in 1997 of Det Sgt John White was a key factor in the deterioration in relations between the Garda and the McBrearty family, at a time when some members of the extended family were suspects for the "murder" of Mr Barron.
Chief Supt Denis Fitzpatrick had deliberately transferred Det Sgt White, a strict disciplinarian, to Raphoe where Mr McBrearty snr had run a nightclub which had been subjected to little Garda attention because of manpower shortages.
He knew both men were headstrong and uncompromising and that they would clash unless the situation was managed properly.
The tribunal found that Mr McBrearty snr was so opposed to taking direction from gardaí that he ignored bomb alerts at his pub, which appeared genuine, and obstructed gardaí clearing patrons from the premises when bomb threats were called in.
However, no steps were taken to avoid the inevitable conflict between Mr McBrearty snr and Det Sgt White.
Supt John Fitzgerald was deliberately kept "out of the loop" on the transfer.
Det Sgt White ignored Supt Fitzgerald's request to "take it easy" in respect of enforcement of the licensing laws at McBrearty's club. He did so because he knew that he had Chief Supt Fitzpatrick's backing.
However, the tribunal was satisfied that the transfer of Det Sgt White and his subsequent clashes with the McBreartys and with their extended family and staff were unrelated to the investigation into the death of Richie Barron.
The tribunal described Det Sgt White as over-zealous. It outlined how Mr McBrearty snr had installed CCTV cameras showing approach roads to his club, alerting him to approaching Garda cars when drink was being served after hours, up to 1.30am three nights a week.
The tribunal rejected Supt Kevin Lennon's evidence trying to distance himself from the campaign of harassment waged against Mr McBrearty snr and his pub in 1997, when it was inspected 125 times.
Mr Justice Frederick Morris similarly said Chief Supt Fitzpatrick and Supt Fitzgerald knew about the campaign against Mr McBrearty snr, despite trying to distance themselves from it at the tribunal.
They had to shoulder some of the blame for the events that ensued arising out of the "inappropriate" campaign, which constituted "harassment" against Mr McBrearty snr.
The tribunal also found that when allegations of wrongdoing began to emerge about gardaí, senior officers tried to reach a discreet truce with Mr McBrearty snr, which he rebuffed.
At that time Mr McBrearty snr knew an extortive phone call had been made from the home of a garda. The call was made by an informer trying to extort money from Raphoe man Michael Peoples in exchange for not falsely implicating Mr Peoples in a row with Mr Barron just before Mr Barron's death.
Mr McBrearty snr had also gotten a statement from local man Robert Noel McBride about a statement coerced from him by gardaí which placed Mark McConnell and Frank McBrearty jnr close to the scene of Mr Barron's "murder" on the night he died.
The tribunal was satisfied that Det Sgt White had placed drugs in the pocket of Paul Quinn, who was related by marriage to the extended McBrearty family. He did so to "put manners" on Mr Quinn.
In relation to the Garda Complaints Board, the tribunal said it was not designed to handle anything other than minor complaints.
However, its staff could not be accused of having shortcomings, given the restrictions of the legislation under which they acted.
The tribunal also noted that some of the complainants refused to co-operate with the complaints board because they were unhappy with some of the gardaí assigned to investigate their complaints.
