A Christian Brother before the court on charges of indecent assault has been the subject of a "violent and vicious attack" on his premises, Tralee District Court has been told. A second brother on similar charges has suffered from a serious stroke. Five Christian Brothers were before the court yesterday facing charges of indecent assault and gross indecency in Tralee in the late 1950s and early 1960s. An order was made by Judge Humphrey Kelleher prohibiting publication of the names of the defendants. At a sitting of the court in June, Judge Terence Finn allowed publication of the names. Mr Sean O Donnabhain, a defending counsel, said that one of the defendants was not present in court because he had suffered a serious stroke. He asked Judge Kelleher that the charges against this defendant be struck out with liberty to re-enter if his client regained full health again.
This defendant is charged with one count of gross indecency, one count of indecent assault and one count of assault occasioning actual bodily harm between 1959 and 1961.
"He is 83 years of age. It is unlikely that he will ever be fit again to come to court. An extraordinary amount of publicity may have precipitated the stroke," said Mr O Donnabhain.
He added that the publicity of the previous sitting of the court was "in clear breach of the Criminal Procedures Act of 1867". Mr O Donnabhain said the charges against his client could be struck out without prejudice to the State. Judge Kelleher agreed to strike the charges out against the defendant.
Mr Ronnie Lynham, solicitor for one of the defendants, asked Judge Kelleher to make an order prohibiting the press from reporting the names and addresses of all the defendants. He said there was an order banning the publication of details of one of the defendants and he asked that this order cover all five defendants.
"One of the defendants has been subjected to a vicious and violent attack on his premises. If there is to be repeated publication of their identity they will be in fear of being subjected to attack," said Mr Lynham.
Judge Kelleher agreed to make a new order and banned the publication of all five defendants' names and addresses. The four remaining defendants were remanded on continuing bail to appear before Tralee Court on December 8th next.