A woman claiming to be the mother of a baby girl discovered stabbed to death over 30 years ago today criticised gardaí today after the inquest was further delayed.
The baby girl, known as Noleen, was found covered in blood in a lane in Dún Laoghaire, Co Dublin, in 1973. Cynthia Owen claims the baby was one of two she gave birth to as a teenager as a result of sexual abuse during the 1970s.
She insisted gardaí should have charged her late mother with murder.
The Dublin County Coroner Dr Kieran Geraghty adjourned the inquest until February 13th, 2007, to study the Garda investigation file that was forwarded to him 11 days ago.
Solicitor for Ms Owen, Gerry Dunne, queried why the gardaí had not forwarded the relevant records and documents to the Coroner's Court in June after the Director of Public Prosecutions said there would be no prosecution in the case.
Keith O'Grady, BL, from the Chief State Solicitor's Office, said advice was required from the Attorney General as there were a number of people involved whose rights had to be considered.
Ms Owen said the coroner had no choice but to further adjourn the inquest
"This is due to the fact that the gardaí, despite knowing that the coroner wanted the file for today, instead sent it to the Attorney General's Office for advice, for nearly five months," she said.
"The State informed the coroner today that a number of people's rights came into play. What about my rights and Noleen's rights?"
"This is now the fourth time Noleen's inquest has been adjourned, and it is simply not good enough because the gardaí have had over 33 years to solve this case, and bearing in mind that on the night my daughter was murdered on April 4th, 1973, my mother who I witnessed murdering my daughter, came into contact with three members of the gardaí on two separate occasions within one hour of my daughter being murdered," she said.
"Yet my mother was never charged with murder and died peacefully only a few weeks ago, while my daughter died a terrible death."
Ms Owen said she expected the full hearing of the inquest in February would officially identify her daughter and deliver a verdict of unlawful killing.