The Law Society will be asked to intervene today by the solicitor who successfully sued the Garda Síochána for libel. This follows the revelation that one of the gardaí at the centre of the case successfully appealed a disciplinary finding against him.
Ms Grainne Malone's solicitor will also be seeking an explanation from the Garda Síochána.
Ms Malone told The Irish Times that she learned of the successful appeal from last week's Prime Time programme. One of the cases described in the programme was hers, where she brought a libel action against the State for comments made about her to one of her clients during questioning by two members of the force, Garda William Dempsey and Garda Eddie Brennan, in Tallaght.
These comments, as well as threats to the client that he would be sexually assaulted in Mountjoy, were recorded on the Garda video camera. The case was settled out of court for a substantial sum, and a statement from the Garda upholding her professional integrity.
Ms Malone said that when she became aware of the contents of the video in April 2002 she wrote to the then Garda commissioner, Mr Pat Byrne, asking him to investigate the threats to her client and the comments about her. In July that year Supt Malachy Mulligan took a statement from her, and said he would keep her informed about the investigation. She heard nothing until a few weeks before the High Court libel action, when she was summoned to appear as a witness at the disciplinary hearing in June 2003. But the night before the hearing she was telephoned by an inspector from Tallaght Garda station saying she would not be required. She was not given a reason.
The next information she received was during the High Court action, when she was told the two gardaí had been fined, and that one had lodged an appeal. She was not called as a witness for this appeal, nor was she informed of its outcome.
"The first I heard of the overturning of Garda Dempsey's conviction was the Prime Time programme," Ms Malone said. "At no stage was I called as a witness. In a criminal case either the accused pleads guilty, or there is a full hearing."
If there is a guilty plea in a criminal case, the accused cannot then appeal the conviction. Ms Malone is in the dark about what happened during this disciplinary process, despite having said in her statement to Supt Mulligan: "I understand that I will be informed of the progress and outcome of the investigation."
"If the State has to pay out substantial compensation, and costs, how does that not constitute a breach of discipline?" she asked.
The Irish Times asked the Garda Press Office yesterday if complainants were normally called as witnesses for disciplinary hearings and informed of their outcome, along with other questions, but was told it would be today at the earliest before they could be answered.