A round-up of today's other court stories in brief.
Woman wins damages case against spouse
A woman was awarded €73,446 damages at the High Court yesterday against her husband arising from an accident in the yard of their home in which she sustained leg injuries.
Mr Justice Daniel Herbert made the award to Anne-Marie Connaughton (40) of Moate, Co Westmeath, in her action against her husband, Peter Connaughton.
The court heard that on December 20th, 2001 Ms Connaughton's lower left leg was crushed between the bumper of a car driven by her husband and the metal rear step of a transit van. Her leg was trapped for about five minutes.
She was taken to Tullamore Hospital but no bone injury was found. A subsequent scan showed she had fractured her left tibia. On December 17th, 2002 she was seen by an orthopaedic surgeon who recorded she was in constant pain in her knee. The judge said she was at risk of developing arthritis.
Ruling delayed in McFarlane appeal
The Supreme Court has reserved judgment on an appeal by the Director of Public Prosecutions against a High Court decision preventing the prosecution of Maze prison escaper Brendan "Bik" McFarlane on charges connected with the 1983 kidnap of supermarket executive Don Tidey.
The High Court made an order in July 2003 preventing the DPP from proceeding with the trial at the non-jury Special Criminal Court because certain exhibits had gone missing and were not available for inspection by McFarlane or his lawyers.
McFarlane (52), of Jamaica Street, Belfast, was charged in 1998 with falsely imprisoning Mr Tidey in 1983 and with having a firearm with intent to endanger life at Derrada Wood, Ballinamore, Co Leitrim, in November and December 1983.
In the High Court, Mr Justice O'Caoimh made an order prohibiting McFarlane's prosecution after hearing that a milk carton, a plastic container and a cooking pot found at a hideout where Mr Tidey was imprisoned and on which fingerprints were recovered had gone missing from Garda Headquarters.
Anthony Collins SC, for the DPP, yesterday argued the onus was on McFarlane to prove there was real risk of an unfair trial because of the missing items which risk could not be rectified by the trial judge.
Hugh Hartnett SC, for McFarlane, said the defence was disadvantaged because it had not access to the missing evidence and could not have the benefit of an expert examining them after more than 20 years.
Cocaine smuggler gets five years
A man who smuggled cocaine worth €200,000 into Ireland has been jailed for five years by Judge Katherine Delahunt at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court.
Matthew Ojo (49) of Dejo Street, Osolo, Lagos, pleaded guilty to having nearly 2.9kg of the drug for sale or supply at Dublin airport on April 10th, 2005.
Jail sentence for drug running
A former insurance agent who smuggled cocaine worth €140,000 into Ireland has been jailed for five years by Dublin Circuit Criminal Court. Michael Vermonden (33) of Oranjeboom Stratt, Breda, Holland, pleaded guilty to having 2kg of cocaine for sale or supply at Dublin airport on March 29th, 2005.