INQUEST PROCEEDINGS into a strychnine poisoning may include a visit by interested parties to St Patrick's detention centre.
At a preliminary hearing of the inquest in September, State Pathologist Prof Marie Cassidy said the death was very unusual and that she had never dealt with a case of strychnine poisoning in 30 years.
Anthony Kelly (20), Snowdrop Walk, Darndale, Dublin, was brought by ambulance from St Patrick's Institution to the Mater hospital after 9pm on May 31st, 2006. He was pronounced dead a little later.
A postmortem by Prof Cassidy found that strychnine, a poison used in the past for poisoning rodents, caused Mr Kelly's death.
When the case was mentioned at Dublin City Coroner's court yesterday, solicitor Michael Finucane, for the Kelly family, called for copies of original statements made to gardaí in the course of their investigation to be made available.
He called for any further information held by gardaí or the Irish Prison Service, such as timetables, rosters or safety check sheets, to be provided to the coroner's office, while recognising that all relevant disclosure may have taken place.
Mr Finucane said he believed a visit to the prison by all parties would be needed, including members of the jury, to be able to understand all issues regarding the death. "If the jury members wish to go to the site, we can certainly facilitate it. It's been done in the past," coroner Dr Brian Farrell said. He adjourned the inquest for two weeks to consider the matter and said he would be guided by case law in making his decisions.
Kenneth Ruane SC, for the Garda, and Stephen Byrne SC, for the Irish Prison Service, said they would consult their clients.