Justice Paul Carney:Mr Justice Paul Carney is not the only High Court judge hearing criminal cases, it just sometimes seems that way.
The presiding judge in the Central Criminal Court, Mr Justice Carney has heard many of the highest-profile murder and rape cases to come before the courts over the past decade.
These include the Kilkenny incest case, the prosecution of Wayne O'Donoghue for the unlawful killing of Robert Holohan earlier this year and a series of murder and rape trials in Limerick which were heard in that city. He is also credited with bringing about a reduction in the length of time it takes for important criminal cases to come to trial, with the average waiting time now at a historically low four months.
A man of outspoken views, he has frequently provoked controversy with his opinions on the justice system and his actions on the bench. Two years ago, he pulled out of a legal conference after a disagreement with the Chief Justice over the content of his paper, which was to deal with crime in Limerick.
Earlier this week, he discharged the jury in a murder case after saying he could not hear the prosecuting counsel during his closing speech. Yesterday, the Court of Criminal Appeal quashed his conviction of Pádraig Nally for the manslaughter of a Traveller on his Co Mayo farm.
This is not the first time one of his convictions has been quashed. In 1999, he convicted former nun Nora Wall, giving her a 10-year sentence, on rape charges but this was later overturned on appeal.
Mr Justice Carney qualified as a barrister in 1966. He is married to Dr Marjorie Young and they have four adult children.
