Gardaí failed to secure a solicitor for Mr John Carthy at any time during the siege at Abbeylara even though Mr Carthy had expressed the fear that he would be "put away", the Barr tribunal heard.
Scene commander Supt Joseph Shelly told the tribunal that there was "no way" a solicitor would have been let into the house while Mr Carthy was armed.
A local radio station reporter came to the scene at 1.30 p.m. on the day of the shooting and told Supt Shelly that Mr Kevin Ireland had received a call from Mr Carthy earlier that morning to say that he wanted a solicitor. A Mr Finnucane was mentioned.
Supt Shelly said he made no attempt to contact Mr Ireland and he could not say whether the Emergency Response Unit negotiator spoke to Mr Ireland either. When asked if any Garda member had contacted the family to discover Mr Finnucane's identity he replied: "not that I'm aware of". Mr Ireland contacted the Garda himself at 2.30 p.m. and gave the solicitor's name as "Mick or John Finnucane", Supt Shelly said. The Garda failed to contact this man.
Mr Carthy had told Mr Ireland he was "concerned he would spend time in prison". A solicitor was one of only two requests made by Mr Carthy during the 25-hour siege. He had also asked for cigarettes.
