THE JURY in George Redmond’s corruption trial at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court has been told that a person doesn’t have to be dishonest to be corrupt.
Judge Joseph Matthews said it was the law that a person could be corrupt without being held to be dishonest and the jury would have to decide if the accused was corrupt based on the evidence heard during the trial.
He told the jurors that while he would instruct them as to the law to be applied on the charges before the court, they alone were the “judges of fact” in the case.
Mr Redmond (84) of College Gate, Castleknock, has pleaded not guilty to two charges arising out of a compulsory purchase order on 167 acres of land at Buzzardstown and Coolmine, in north-west Dublin when he was an assistant county manager.
He denies receiving £10,000 from the late Fianna Fáil councillor Patrick Dunne between October 10th, 1985 and June 26th, 1989 as an inducement in respect of the order and to receiving the money “as a reward for showing favour to another” in relation to the same land.
Judge Matthews noted the prosecution argued the evidence given by Mr Redmond’s old friend of some 70 years, retired tax inspector turned tax adviser Brendan O’Brien, was independent corroboration of the accused’s guilt in view of his admissions to gardaí after his arrest in February 1999 at Dublin airport.
Judge Matthews said it could be considered that this evidence might be capable in law of constituting corroboration but that was a matter for the jury to decide.
Judge Matthews told the jury he would complete his charge today, day 17 of the trial, before sending the three women and eight men out to begin deliberating.