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Cosyfill.ie | Limerick & Munster
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24-year-old Jennifer Poole from Dublin was murdered in 2021 by her ex-partner, who had previous domestic violence convictions. The Poole family, particularly Jennie’s brother Jason, have since advocated for the change in legislation.
Minister for Justice Jim O’Callaghan said that “this legislation will help people who are in a relationship or considering a relationship with a person to ascertain whether they have a history of serious domestic violence convictions”.
“The register is one part of the Government’s broader, comprehensive strategy to protect victims of domestic violence and reduce reoffending.”
Denise Dunne from ADAPT Domestic Abuse Services in Limerick welcomed the new law, but believes it is only a starting point.
“The registrar is the register of people who have been convicted of an offence of domestic abuse, but a lot of the time abuse goes unreported,” she told the Limerick Post.
“If a case does go down the legal route, a woman may take out a civil order (in family court), but a safety or barring order is not a crime. If an order is taken against somebody, it only becomes a crime if that order is breached.
“If a woman checks the register and the perpetrator or their partner’s name isn’t on it, it doesn’t necessarily mean that they are not somebody who has abused before.”
More than physical violence
While most people might associate domestic abuse with physical violence, cases of coercive control are the most common type of cases at ADAPT, Ms Dunne revealed.
Coercive control is where a person or partner knowingly and persistently engages in behaviour that is controlling and/or coercive and has a serious effect on the victim.
Ms Dunne described it as someone who is constantly trying to monitor the other person.
“They will want to know where they are, send them multiple texts at work to make sure they are there, and meet them afterwards to make sure they are going straight home,” she said.
They may also want to know “who their partner is meeting, ask them to wear particular clothes or to dress in a certain way, or not want them to hang around with their friends”, she added.
This may lead to victims becoming isolated from family and friends and becoming dependent on their abuser.
“Coercive control is a really high risk indicator, more so than physical abuse, even though the two go hand in hand. But where there is a high level of control, sometimes that’s a very high indicator of homicide as well,” Ms Dunne said.
Disclosure of counselling notes during criminal trials will also now be restricted to the maximum extent possible, under the new laws, while ensuring independent judicial oversight in all cases.
In January this year, victims of sexual assault, counsellors and supporters took to the streets of Limerick calling for an outright ban on the disclosure of counselling notes during criminal trials.
Counselling notes concern
Speaking to the Limerick Post at the time, Caitríona Hickey opened up about the sexual assaults she suffered at the hands of her uncle, John Hogan, between 1994 and 2001.
Although Ms Hickey’s counselling notes were never released to the court, she said even the possibility of it happening left her feeling “shook”.
“The fact that the notes of my journey through this nightmare could have been requested and used by the defence was another violation and added to my trauma. Facts are evidence. Timelines and pictures are evidence. Notes of processing how to be a functioning human after experiencing gender-based violence is not evidence,” she said.
Under Irish law, the defence must be told if an individual has counselling records, but not its contents. The defence or prosecution can ask to see the records if they believe they may be relevant to the trial.
Individuals can choose whether they consent to records being released, and can withdraw that consent at any time. Individuals are also allowed to see their records before they are released.
Minister O’Callaghan explained that the default position will be that counselling notes will not be disclosed except in cases where disclosure is ordered by a judge and warranted in the interest of justice and a fair trial.
“I am aware that the disclosure of counselling notes can cause deep distress to victims and survivors of sexual violence. The Government is committed to minimising intrusion into victims privacy to the greatest extent possible. However, this must be done within the Constitution, which guarantees the right to a fair trial and the presumption of innocence.”
He added: “A complete ban on counselling notes would be unconstitutional as advised by the Attorney General. To do so would risk convictions or lead to mistrials. I want to thank those survivors and organisations working in the sector for their constructive engagement on this amendment.”
For ADAPT Domestic Abuse Services in Limerick, counselling is not a service they offer to victims. However notes from the service’s clients may be requested from solicitors or Gardaí when preparing for a criminal trial.
“We need the woman’s consent to release those notes,” Ms Dunne said. “Very often the notes could sometimes be used against them. She will be fully informed that the partner will also get a copy of these notes as well.”
Ms Dunne also believes that once these changes are in law, regular reviews of the legislation will be important to ensure it is working for victims of domestic violence.
“Jennie’s Law is the first starting point and it’s something that can be developed and looked at. I’d like to see the value of a review in maybe a year from now to see how effective it is and what lessons can be learned from it as well,” she said.
New laws also set to come into effect are the exploitative practice of seeking sex in lieu of rent, which will now be criminalised, and Valerie’s Law, which will remove, in certain circumstances, guardianship rights from individuals convicted of killing their partner or the other parent of their child.
–Court Reporting Scheme
