The widow and three young children of Garda Sgt Andrew Callanan, who died following an alleged arson attack, were awarded interim compensation of £644,900 at the High Court yesterday.
Further compensation is to be determined by Mr Justice O'Sullivan in a judgment on December 6th in proceedings against the State by Mrs Yvonne Callanan and her children under the Garda Compensation Acts.
Yesterday's award consisted of £635,000 in direct financial loss and £9,900 for special damages which, the State agreed, Mrs Callanan and her family will suffer as a result of the death of Sgt Callanan (36), on July 21st 1999.
He died in hospital after suffering serious burns in a fire in Tallaght Garda station after a man arrived there at 4 a.m. The man was alleged to have had a plastic container of highly inflammable material. Criminal proceedings have begun in relation to the incident.
Yesterday Mr Harry Whelehan SC, for Mrs Callanan and Stephen (6) and twins Jennifer and Sophie (3), asked the judge to bring in a final compensation figure of £1.044 million, including yesterday's interim award.
After being told by Ms Sunniva McDonagh, for the State, that it had no objection to an interim payment, Mr Justice O'Sullivan directed that £527,900 be paid out immediately; £36,000 lodged in court for Stephen, and £40,500 each be lodged for Jennifer and Sophie.
In his judgment on December 6th he will decide on further awards to the Callanan family under headings such as loss of husband, loss of father, break-up of the family caused by the death, loss of society and loss of consortium.
Mr Whelehan suggested to the court that a further award of £175,000 to Mrs Callanan and at least £75,000 each to the children might be appropriate.
Ms McDonagh said she felt a more comparative figure might be the £60,000 awarded to the widow of a Garda sergeant shot dead while serving with the UN in Sarajevo in May 1995, whose three children had received £20,000 each on top of agreed financial compensation.
Earlier the court was told by the Callanans' family doctor, Dr Stephen Mathews of Enniskerry, Co Wicklow, that Mrs Callanan was suffering from biological depression for which she was receiving medication. The drugs had helped to alleviate her suffering but did not eliminate the depression. He was hopeful, through a combination of medication and cognitive psychotherapy counselling, she would fully recover in the future.
The family would require special care and attention in the foreseeable future with a special watch being kept on their psychological needs, he said.