Crime back in headlines with murder of two women

Saturday/Sunday

CRIME dominated the weekend, with Garda investigations continuing into the deaths of two women in what was described as a particularly savage attack at St Brendan's psychiatric hospital, Grangegorman, Dublin.

It emerged that a report by nursing staff expressing concern about the safety of residents in hostels attached to St Brendan's had been made just four days before the attack occurred.

Fianna Fail challenged the Garda Commissioner, Mr Pat Byrne, to state what categories of and level of crime he believed to be "tolerable", following the Commissioner's comments on the party's crime policy document. Mr Byrne said he was "very sceptical" about the "zero tolerance" approach, which he described as a "lovely buzz word".

A Castletownbere fishing skipper, Danny "Boy" O'Driscoll (42), died 10 miles off the Co Cork coast after his trawler, the Exodus, sank in a collision with a Spanish vessel, the Sea Horse. Two other crew on the Exodus were rescued unharmed. The Minister for the Marine, Mr Barrett, ordered an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the incident.

Monday

An "unprecedented" alliance of Christian and Muslim churches criticised the Government's Education Bill for undermining the right of religious bodies to run their own schools.

The Zimbabwean President, Mr Robert Mugabe, was at the centre of a major alert at Shannon Airport following a fire in one engine of his aircraft some three minutes after take off for Harare. The plane circled for some time over Shannon to shed fuel, and landed safely Mr Mugabe had been in Ireland to attend the Irish Times Harvard University colloquium at University College, Dublin.

The Marie Stopes Reproductive Choices Clinic, which is at the centre of an allegation that an abortion was carried out on the premises it occupies in Dublin in, 1995, suspended a doctor, pending a Garda investigation.

Cannabis with a street value of £3.84 million was seized from a truck which disembarked from the Cherbourg Rosslare ferry.

As investigations continued into the fishing vessel collision off the Cork coast, marine sources confirmed that the Spanish vessel had been detained twice for logbook offences in Irish waters.

Tuesday

Startling criticism of named officials with the Blood Transfusion Service Board (BTSB) was contained in the report of the hepatitis C tribunal. The report, written by the tribunal chairman, Mr Justice Thomas Finlay, was referred by the Government to the Director of Public Prosecutions.

The report recommended that BTSB premises at Pelican House, Dublin, be closed and that it be relocated to St James's Hospital, Dublin.

The Government announced, details of a £180 million plan to demolish Ballymun flats and build new houses.

A High Court order for the arrest of the Spanish flagship which was in collision with the Co Corks trawler was granted to the 81 year old mother of the Castletownbere skipper who died.

Wednesday

The President, Mrs Robinson, announced that she would not be seeking a second term of office later this year. As tributes poured into her office from home and abroad, Mrs Robinson held preliminary discussions with the Taoiseach on her attempt to secure the post of United Nations Commissioner for Human Rights.

The outgoing Fianna Fail TD, Mrs Maire Geoghegan Quinn, said she was not interested in running for the Presidency, but told Teilifis na Gaeilge that if any party leader said that "your country needs you" to run, it would be very difficult to refuse.

The Irish Antarctic Expedition returned to Dublin.

Thursday

A British soldier and RUC man sustained serious injuries in east Belfast when a patrol came under a bomb attack in the Short Strand area. Earlier, a British soldier was injured when an armoured patrol came under a grenade attack in the Ardoyne area of north Belfast.

Fianna Fail said that in government it would concede aggravated and exemplary damages to people infected with hepatitis C through contaminated blood products.

The first divorce decree under new legislation was granted in, Castlebar Circuit Court, Co Mayo.