Real IRA leader Michael McKevitt has been given leave to go to the Supreme Court on a point of law in a fresh bid to challenge his conviction for directing terrorism.
The Court of Criminal Appeal yesterday certified that a point of law raised by McKevitt's counsel, Hugh Hartnett SC, was of such exceptional public importance that it should be determined by the Supreme Court.
The decision effectively means a fresh appeal for McKevitt against his conviction. Mr Justice Nicholas Kearns, presiding at the Court of Criminal Appeal, certified the point of law on the issue of non-disclosure.
The defence had sought disclosure of the US tax returns of the main prosecution witness in McKevitt's case, FBI agent and supergrass David Rupert, but this had been denied.
The Supreme Court will now hear arguments on whether the obligations of disclosure by the prosecution in a criminal trial are fulfilled when all reasonable efforts had been made to secure documentary evidence outside the jurisdiction. Those obligations will be considered in circumstances where the pivotal issue is a witness's credibility and where there is documentary evidence relevant to that credibility outside the jurisdiction.
Last December the Court of Criminal Appeal dismissed McKevitt's appeal against his conviction for directing terrorism. The court found the Special Criminal Court was entitled to conclude that David Rupert, the main prosecution witness in the case, was a credible witness.
It also found the Special Criminal Court was correct to accept Mr Rupert's evidence and to convict McKevitt for directing terrorism. The court also ruled that all matters relating to disclosure in the trial were properly dealt with by the Special Criminal Court.
McKevitt (54), Beech Park, Blackrock, Co Louth, was jailed for 20 years in August 2003 after he was convicted of directing the activities of a terrorist organisation between August 29th, 1999 and October 23rd, 2000. He was the first person to be convicted in the State for the offence which was introduced after the Real IRA bomb attack in Omagh in 1998 in which 29 people died.
McKevitt also received a six-year concurrent prison sentence for membership of an illegal organisation which the court said was the Real IRA.
The four-day appeal last year centred on the issues concerning the reliability of the chief prosecution witness in the trial, Mr Rupert, who had infiltrated the Real IRA and attended Real IRA army council meetings where McKevitt was present.
The court heard during the appeal that Mr Rupert had been paid $1.4 million (€1.1 million) by the FBI and £400,000 (€580,000) by the British Security Service.
The court rejected all criticisms of the Special Criminal Court's judgment in relation to Mr Rupert's credibility.