Judge rejects defence bid for ban on media naming Ongar murder accused

A judge has refused to prevent the media from naming a youth charged with the murder of a man in Ongar, west Dublin last month.

John Mulrooney (18), of Manorfield Green, Clonee, Dublin, is accused of murdering Aaron Keating on June 13th at Main Street in Ongar.

Mr Keating, who was in his 40s and from Blanchardstown, suffered severe wounds and was removed from the scene to Connolly Hospital Blanchardstown, where he was pronounced dead.

The accused was 17, a minor, and could not be identified in media coverage of the case when it first came before the Dublin Children’s Court on June 16th.

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At that time, the usual Children’s Act reporting restrictions applied, and he was remanded to the Oberstown Children Detention Campus.

The teen appeared again at the Dublin Children’s Court on Friday.

Judge Brendan Toale noted that gardaí sought further directions from the Director of Public Prosecution, and the teen consented to a four-week adjournment.

Defence counsel Doireann McDonagh said that the client had turned 18, and it was expected he would now, as an adult, be remanded to Cloverhill Prison. However, the teenager wanted to remain at the Oberstown detention campus.

The judge said he could only send a child there if he were the subject of a sentence, and he had no choice but to remand him to Cloverhill Prison.

The defence also asked the judge to consider imposing reporting restrictions because the alleged offence occurred when he was a child.

The barrister said the youth was “an extremely vulnerable young man with a raft of diagnoses”, and it would be extremely damaging to him if he were identified.

However, refusing the application, Judge Toale referred to legal authorities in the forms of two High Court and Court of Appeal judgements, which addressed this issue and accepted that the loss of anonymity occurs at 18 and “standard law applies”.

Mr Keating was known to the State services and lived in local private supported accommodation for several years. A Garda family liaison officer has been appointed to his family.

Det Sgt Garda Mark Murphy had said that when the teen was charged, “there was no reply to the charge after caution”.