§ Mr. BerminghamTo ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what was the basis of the prosecution against Mr. Thomas Francis Doheny in March 1993; on what basis his home was raided by police officers acting on a warrant granted to the Royal Ulster Constabulary; what was the source of authorisation for the issue of warrants against him(a) in Ulster and (b) in the United Kingdom; and who gave backing for the warrant for execution in the United Kingdom.
§ Sir John Wheeler[holding answer 29 March 1994]: A warrant was sought and issued for Mr. Doheny's arrest based on a complaint about the theft of a vehicle. This warrant was duly executed in England by virtue of section 38 of the Criminal Law Act 1977.
§ Mr. BerminghamTo ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland when he expects the investigation into the case of Mr. Thomas Francis Doheny referred to in the letter of 9 March from the Northern Ireland Office to Mr. M. O'Brien of the Committee on the Administration of Justice to be completed; if the report of the investigation of the case will be made available on publication; and if he will make a statement.
§ Sir John Wheeler[holding answer 29 March 1994]: The investigation of Mr. Doheny's case has been completed and a file is currently with the Director of Public Prosecutions. Reports of such investigations are not published.
§ Mr. BerminghamTo ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what is his customary practice for Northern Ireland in suspending the issue of warrants for imprisonment upon convicted persons for a number of hours following such convictions; what is the purpose of such delays in issue; what is the frequency of instances where the issue of warrants upon convicted persons is
Table 1 Magistrates' courts 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 Findings (indictable and summary) 16,428 15,613 16,667 16,313 16,931 16,210 14,662 14,315 13,696 13,327 Guilty pleas 13,598 12,945 13,881 13,886 14,031 14,471 12,340 11,927 11,491 10,872 Percentage 83 83 83 85 83 83 84 83 84 82 Conviction after not guilty plea 1,302 1,397 1,203 773 876 821 461 430 470 665 Percentage 8 9 7 5 5 5 3 3 3 5 Acquittals 1,528 1,271 1,583 1,654 2,024 1,918 1,861 1,958 1,735 1,790 Percentage 9 8 9 10 12 12 13 14 13 13
834W
Table 2 Crown Court: scheduled offences 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 Findings (Indictable and Summary) 638 507 698 596 713 515 456 470 423 413 Guilty Pleas 464 426 552 528 634 442 373 386 343 301 Per cent. 73 84 79 89 89 86 82 82 81 73 Conviction after not guilty plea 113 38 73 39 46 45 41 54 45 53 Per cent. 18 7 10 7 6 9 9 11 11 13 Acquittals 61 43 73 29 33 28 42 30 35 59 Per cent. 10 8 10 5 5 5 9 6 8 14 delayed; and if he will make a statement on the operation of those principles in the case of Mr. Thomas Francis Doheny, convicted in the petty sessions district of Omagh on 12 March 1993.
§ Sir John Wheeler[holding answer 29 March 1994]The decision to delay the issue of a warrant in any particular case is a matter within the discretion of the resident magistrate and it would not therefore be appropriate for me to comment. The frequency of instances where such delays are applied is a matter for my right hon. Friend the Lord Chancellor to answer. However, I understand that the information is not available in the form requested and to extract it would incur disproportionate cost.