Ireland Case No. 7806Public order offence · Co. Dublin
Burke's public order conviction quashed at Four Courts
Simeon Burke, a 24-year-old Irish law student from Castlebar, Co Mayo, was arrested at the Four Courts on 7 March 2023 after a disruption during the delivery of a judgment in his brother Enoch Burke's case at the Court of Appeal. He was charged with a breach of the peace under the Public Order Act for threatening, insulting and abusive words and behaviour, and pleaded not guilty. Burke was convicted at Dublin District Court on 17 April 2023 and fined €300. On 15 April 2024, the Circuit Court quashed the conviction, with the judge finding that Burke's behaviour did not meet the threshold for a public order offence.
- Reportednot reported
- Arrestednot reported
- Chargednot reported
- In court11 Apr
5 reports - Verdict9 Jun
3 reports - Sentenced17 Apr
2 reports
reportedhappened, not reportedlatest stagenot yet
Key facts
consolidated from all reports- What happened
- Simeon Burke, a 24-year-old Irish law student from Castlebar, Co Mayo, was physically removed from the Court of Appeal by gardaí after a disruption during the delivery of a judgment in his brother Enoch Burke's case.
- Where
- The incident occurred at the Court of Appeal, Four Courts, Inns Quay, Dublin.
- When
- The incident took place on 7 March 2023.
- Cause
- The disruption occurred during the delivery of a judgment in the case of Enoch Burke, who had contested his suspension from Wilson's Hospital School.
- Charges
- Burke was charged with a breach of the peace under Section 6 of the Public Order Act for engaging in threatening, insulting and abusive words and behaviour.
- Investigation
- Garda Conor O'Dwyer arrested Burke under the Public Order Act, and he was remanded in custody at Cloverhill Prison, having refused to sign a bail bond.
- In court
- Burke pleaded not guilty and was convicted at Dublin District Court on 17 April 2023, where he was fined €300.
- On 15 April 2024, the Circuit Court quashed the conviction, with the judge finding that Burke's behaviour did not meet the threshold for a public order offence.
- Other details
- Audio recordings of the court sitting were released to the DPP and to Burke for his appeal, but access to ambient recordings made after the judges left was refused.
- Burke and his sister Ammi complained to GSOC about the Garda handling of the matter.
109 statements extracted from the articles
- whatSimeon Burke is a remand prisoner and a law student. (irishtimes.com)
- whatSimeon Burke is 24 years old. (irishtimes.com)
- whatHe maintained that the presiding judge had not asked his family to leave the courtroom on the day of his arrest. (irishtimes.com)
- whatSimeon Burke was physically removed from the court by gardaí after the judges left. (irishtimes.com)
- whatAudio recordings of court proceedings will be released to gardaí and to Simeon Burke as part of his appeal against his conviction. (thejournal.ie)
- whatGsoc has been refused access to ambient audio recordings of a court melee. (irishtimes.com)
- whatThe incident led to Simeon Burke being convicted of a public order offence. (irishtimes.com)
- whereSimeon Burke is of Cloonsunna, Castlebar, Co Mayo. (irishtimes.com)
- whereSimeon Burke's address is Cloonsunna, Castlebar, Co Mayo. (irishtimes.com)
- whereBurke was arrested on a public order charge at the Four Courts. (irishtimes.com)
- whereThe disturbance happened at the Court of Appeal. (rte.ie)
- whereSimeon Burke was convicted of the offence on or about the Four Courts, Inns Quay. (thejournal.ie)
- whereThe offence occurred on or about the Four Courts, Inns Quay. (irishtimes.com)
- whereThe offence was said to have occurred on or about the Four Courts, Inns Quay, in Dublin. (thejournal.ie)
- whereSimeon Burke was dragged from the Four Courts by gardaí. (extra.ie)
- whenThe incident giving rise to the charge took place at the Court of Appeal on 7 March 2023. (irishtimes.com)
- whenThe outbursts in the Court of Appeal took place on 7 March. (irishtimes.com)
- whenThe disturbance occurred at the Court of Appeal on 7 March. (rte.ie)
- whenThe access covers only the recording of when the court actually sat on 7 March. (irishtimes.com)
- whenThe disruption during Enoch Burke's hearing happened on 7 March 2023. (thejournal.ie)
- whenBurke was arrested on March 7th following a disruption while the Court of Appeal was delivering a judgment. (irishtimes.com)
- whenThe appeal against the District Court conviction was heard on 15 April 2024. (thejournal.ie)
- whenThe public order offence occurred on 7 March 2023. (thejournal.ie)
- causeSimeon Burke was arrested after a disruption during a hearing for his brother Enoch Burke. (thejournal.ie)
- investigationSimeon Burke has been remanded in custody since his arrest over a month ago and has declined to take up consent to bail. (thejournal.ie)
- investigationHe was provided with CCTV evidence on Wednesday despite being previously told there was no footage. (irishtimes.com)
- investigationThe footage was given to him five minutes before his case was listed for mention. (irishtimes.com)
- investigationHe was told by the DPP that there was no CCTV evidence from the court on the day of his arrest. (irishtimes.com)
- investigationGda Conor O'Dwyer said he arrested Burke under the Public Order Act for an offence under Section 6. (rte.ie)
- investigationSimeon Burke was arrested in connection with the incident at the Court of Appeal. (irishtimes.com)
- investigationSimeon Burke and his sister Ammi have complained to GSOC about the Garda handling of the matter. (irishtimes.com)
- investigationGardaí asked the Court of Appeal for the release of the digital audio recording of the court proceedings. (thejournal.ie)
- investigationGardaí are also investigating the incident and had sought the same recordings. (irishtimes.com)
- investigationBurke argued that gardaí took an overzealous and panicked approach to the incident. (thejournal.ie)
- chargeSimeon Burke has pleaded not guilty to a breach of the peace offence in connection with outbursts in the Court of Appeal on 7 March. (thejournal.ie)
- chargeSimeon Burke is charged with a breach of the peace under the Public Order Act for engaging in threatening, insulting and abusive words and behaviour at the Court of Appeal. (thejournal.ie)
- chargeHe was charged with a Public Order Act offence for engaging in threatening, insulting and abusive words and behaviour at the Four Courts on March 7th. (irishtimes.com)
- chargeSimeon Burke is charged with a breach of the peace under the Public Order Act. (irishtimes.com)
- chargeBurke is charged with breach of the peace under the Public Order Act for threatening, insulting and abusive words and behaviour at the Court of Appeal. (irishtimes.com)
- chargeSimeon Burke was charged with an offence under the Public Order Act. (rte.ie)
- chargeSimeon Burke was convicted of a volatile public order breach arising from his conduct during the delivery of a judgment. (irishtimes.com)
- chargeSimeon Burke was convicted of an offence under the Public Order Act for threatening, insulting and abusive words and behaviour. (thejournal.ie)
- chargeBurke was convicted of an offence under the Public Order Act for threatening, insulting and abusive words and behaviour. (irishtimes.com)
- courtMr Justice Mark Heslin said he was not prepared to hear the application on foot of an alleged breach of the peace following an incident at the Court of Appeal the previous month. (thejournal.ie)
- courtSimeon Burke applied for an inquiry under Article 40.4 of the Constitution into his continued detention at the Dublin prison. (thejournal.ie)
- courtSimeon Burke's contested hearing is due to take place before the District Court on 17 April 2023. (thejournal.ie)
- courtSimeon Burke's case is due for mention on 12 April to confirm the hearing will proceed. (thejournal.ie)
- courtSimeon Burke failed in a bid to challenge his arrest. (extra.ie)
- courtHe was representing himself before Judge Gráinne Malone at Dublin District Court. (irishtimes.com)
- courtJudge Malone told the defendant the law was clear that he was entitled to disclosure and the court was conscious of the obligation for fair procedures. (irishtimes.com)
- courtJudge Malone informed him she had no jurisdiction to determine the lawfulness of his detention. (irishtimes.com)
- courtShe remanded him in continuing custody with consent to bail to appear on Monday for his hearing. (irishtimes.com)
- courtThe contested hearing is due before the District Court on 17 April 2023. (irishtimes.com)
- courtBurke has pleaded not guilty and the contested hearing is set for the District Court on 17 April. (irishtimes.com)
- courtBurke was granted an inquiry under Article 40.4.2 of the Constitution into the legality of his detention at Cloverhill Prison. (irishtimes.com)
- courtThe inquiry is being conducted by Mr Justice Brian Cregan. (irishtimes.com)
- courtA law student is to face trial. (extra.ie)
- courtJudge John Hughes found the prosecution had proven its case. (rte.ie)
- courtThe judge said an aggravating factor was that the incident began in a courtroom and spilled over into the yard. (rte.ie)
- courtThe DPP has been permitted to access an audio recording of the Court of Appeal sitting. (irishtimes.com)
- courtAccess was not granted to recordings of chaotic scenes after the judges left the bench. (irishtimes.com)
- courtSimeon Burke is appealing his District Court conviction to the Circuit Court. (irishtimes.com)
- courtThe judge directed release of the recording to both sides only for when the court sat. (irishtimes.com)
- courtMr Justice Edwards ruled that only recordings made while the court was sitting should be released. (thejournal.ie)
- courtSimeon Burke is to appeal his conviction at the Circuit Court, where fresh evidence including the recordings can be heard. (thejournal.ie)
- courtMr Justice Edwards refused the Gsoc application for the recordings. (irishtimes.com)
- courtThe judge said Gsoc could renew the application if it first produced evidence that the ambient system was recording. (irishtimes.com)
- courtThe matter was adjourned to October 6th. (irishtimes.com)
- courtBurke is to appeal his conviction to the Circuit Court. (irishtimes.com)
- courtBurke had denied the charge at Dublin District Court in July of the previous year. (thejournal.ie)
- courtBurke was convicted and fined €300 for a public order offence at Dublin District Court. (thejournal.ie)
- courtBurke's appeal was allowed and his conviction quashed. (thejournal.ie)
- courtJudge Martin said he was not convinced Burke's behaviour met the threshold for a public order offence. (thejournal.ie)
- courtJudge Martin found the behaviour did not meet the threshold for a criminal offence for breach of the peace. (thejournal.ie)
- sentenceThe offence carries a possible three-month custodial sentence. (thejournal.ie, irishtimes.com)
- sentenceThe offence carries a possible three-month sentence. (irishtimes.com)
- sentenceThe breach of the peace offence carries a possible three-month custodial sentence. (irishtimes.com)
- sentenceSimeon Burke was convicted under the Public Order Act and fined €300. (rte.ie)
- sentenceSimeon Burke was convicted at the District Court and fined €300. (irishtimes.com)
- otherIt is alleged that Simeon Burke was wrongfully arrested, has been fundamentally denied justice, and that the warrant detaining him in prison is flawed. (thejournal.ie)
- otherHe has repeatedly refused to sign a bail bond with a condition to stay away from the Four Courts. (irishtimes.com)
- otherHe is in custody in Cloverhill Prison. (irishtimes.com)
- otherAmmi Burke spoke up from the public gallery to say a formal application was made to the CoA for the recording. (irishtimes.com)
- otherSimeon Burke raised issues concerning the lawfulness of his arrest and treatment by the Garda and his ongoing detention. (irishtimes.com)
- otherSimeon Burke claims the District Court lacks jurisdiction to hear the case against him. (irishtimes.com)
- otherSimeon Burke seeks an order directing his immediate release from Cloverhill. (irishtimes.com)
- otherSimeon Burke has refused to take up bail. (irishtimes.com)
- otherSimeon Burke has been remanded in custody since his arrest over a month earlier. (irishtimes.com)
- otherSimeon Burke is a student barrister-at-law at the Kings Inns. (irishtimes.com)
- otherSimeon Burke refused to sign a bail bond with a condition to stay away from the Four Courts. (irishtimes.com)
- otherA judge has ordered an inquiry into the jailing of Simeon Burke. (extra.ie)
- otherBurke claims he was wrongfully arrested, detained and physically injured when removed from the courtroom. (irishtimes.com)
- otherBurke claims the warrant detaining him is fundamentally flawed, including because it says he was arrested by a garda who he alleges did not arrest him. (irishtimes.com)
- otherThe State and the DPP reject Burke's arguments and say he is lawfully detained. (irishtimes.com)
- otherCounsel for the State said gardaí did not require a warrant to remove people from the courtroom. (irishtimes.com)
- otherBurke has been remanded in custody since his arrest, having declined bail on a point of principle. (irishtimes.com)
- otherA judge criticised Simeon Burke's 'rank hypocrisy'. (extra.ie)
- otherThe judge did not accept Burke's allegations against gardaí. (rte.ie)
- otherBurke said he would not pay the fine and still did not accept the conviction. (rte.ie)
- otherBurke has been in custody on remand since 7 March after refusing to sign a bail bond. (rte.ie)
- otherBurke denied the allegations and said the gardaí caused the disturbance. (rte.ie)
- otherSimeon Burke was remanded in custody for a time after refusing to sign a bail bond. (irishtimes.com)
- otherEnoch Burke said he consented to the release of the recordings except those made after the judges had left the court. (thejournal.ie)
- otherBurke argued that using recordings made beyond the court sitting would amount to covert surveillance and should not be admissible. (thejournal.ie)
- otherThe judge raised concerns that people present in court may be unaware the ambient system existed. (irishtimes.com)
- otherBurke was convicted under Section 6 of the Public Order Act. (thejournal.ie)
- otherGarda Conor O'Dwyer said Burke had kicked out at him, causing him to fall. (thejournal.ie)
- otherBurke denied kicking out and said the alleged kick occurred where there was no CCTV. (thejournal.ie)
- otherBurke was representing himself at the appeal. (thejournal.ie)
The reporting
newest first- 15 Apr2024Simeon Burke, Who Was Dragged From Four Courts By Gardaí, Wins Appeal
Headline only: Simeon Burke, previously convicted of a public order offence, has won an appeal. The article body contains no other details.
convicted, Simeon Burke, named, irish (judged from name)Simeon Burke - 15 Apr2024Simeon Burke has conviction for 'volatile' breach of peace struck out
Reports the April 2024 appeal ruling that quashed Simeon Burke's District Court conviction, with Garda and Burke evidence about the incident.
accused, Simeon Burke, 25, male, named, irish (judged from name)Simeon Burke - 21 Jul2023Gsoc refused access to ambient recordings of court ‘melee’ that led to Simeon Burke conviction
Reports a ruling in Gsoc's investigation into garda conduct during the incident, and that Simeon Burke was convicted under the Public Order Act and is appealing to the Circuit Court. Does not give the year of the March 7th arrest.
convicted, Simeon Burke, 24, male, named, irish (judged from name)Simeon Burke - 9 Jun2023Recordings of Court of Appeal 'melee' to be released to gardaí and to Simeon Burke
Adds that the Court of Appeal ruled only recordings made while the court was sitting may be released, that Simeon Burke will appeal his District Court conviction at the Circuit Court, and that gardaí had asked for the digital audio recording.
convicted, Simeon Burke, 24, named, irish (judged from name)Simeon Burke - 9 Jun2023Judge grants DPP application to access court recording of Enoch Burke appeal hearing
Reports that the DPP was granted access only to the recording of the court sitting, not ambient recordings made after the judges left. Reports that Simeon Burke is appealing his conviction to the Circuit Court and that the judge directed release of the DAR only for when the court sat.
convicted, Simeon Burke, named, irish (judged from name)Simeon Burke - 17 Apr2023Simeon Burke fined €300 over public order offence
Reports the District Court conviction of Simeon Burke after trial, the €300 fine, the judge's findings, and Burke's refusal to pay the fine.
convicted, Simeon Burke, 24, male, named, irish (judged from name)Simeon Burke - 15 Apr2023Judge Criticises Simeon Burke's 'Rank Hypocrisy' As Law Student To Face Trial
Only the headline is present; the article text is missing. It adds that a judge criticised Simeon Burke and that a law student is to face trial.
accused, Simeon Burke, named, irish (judged from name)Simeon Burke - 13 Apr2023High Court urged to dismiss Simeon Burke’s claim that he is unlawfully detained in prison
Adds an article 40 habeas corpus inquiry in the High Court into the legality of Burke's detention at Cloverhill Prison, the State's and DPP's opposition to it, and the April 17 hearing date for the District Court charge.
accused, Simeon Burke, 24, male, named, irish (judged from name)Simeon Burke - 13 Apr2023Judge Orders Inquiry Into Jailing Of Simeon Burke
The article gives only a headline: a judge has ordered an inquiry into the jailing of Simeon Burke. The body is template markup with no further details.
accused, Simeon Burke, named, irish (judged from name)Simeon Burke - 12 Apr2023High Court judge directs inquiry into the legality of law student Simeon Burke’s prison detention
Mr Justice Anthony Barr directed an Article 40.4 inquiry into the legality of Simeon Burke's detention after two other High Court judges (Mark Heslin and Melanie Greally) had refused similar applications. The inquiry is to take place before the duty judge at the Four Courts during the vacation sitting. Burke's contested hearing on the public order charge is due before the District Court on 17 April 2023.
accused, Simeon Burke, 24, male, named, irish (judged from name)Simeon Burke - 12 Apr2023Simeon Burke insists judge never asked family to leave Court of Appeal
Pre-trial procedural hearing in which Burke challenged the late disclosure of CCTV evidence and requested the Court of Appeal's digital audio recording; Judge Gráinne Malone remanded him in continuing custody with consent to bail to appear on Monday.
suspect, Simeon Burke, 24, male, named, irish (judged from name)Simeon Burke - 12 Apr2023'F**k Him Out Of The Courtroom' -- Simeon Burke Fails In Bid To Challenge Arrest
Reports that Simeon Burke's bid to challenge his arrest was unsuccessful.
accused, Simeon Burke, male, named, irish (judged from name)Simeon Burke - 11 Apr2023High Court judge refuses inquiry into legality of Simeon Burke's detention
Reports that the High Court refused to entertain an Article 40.4 inquiry into the legality of Simeon Burke's detention, that he has been remanded in custody since his arrest over a month ago and has declined bail, and that his contested hearing is set for 17 April 2023 before the District Court.
accused, Simeon Burke, 24, male, named, irish (judged from name)Simeon Burke