A SENIOR prosecutor has said it would have been "unfair" to take Sinn Fin president Gerry Adams to court for allegedly withholding information about his paedophile brother
Pamela Atchison, deputy director of the Public Prosecution Service (PPS), said to pursue Mr Adams after he appeared as a crown witness would have undermined the public's confidence in the justice system.
She was speaking after Attorney General John Larkin said the PPS had been "premature" to decide that there was not enough evidence to justify prosecuting the Louth TD for failing to report his brother Liam Adams's child abuse to the authorities.
However, he agreed a decision not to prosecute Mr Adams on the charge of withholding information was correct
Mr Larkin reviewed the case in 2013 at the request of Barra McGrory, the Director of Public Prosecutions, but it was not made public until after an appeal hearing.
Liam Adams was jailed for 16 years in 2013 for assaulting his daughter ine over a six-year period during the 1970s and 1980s, beginning when she was aged just four.
Gerry Adams was a witness in the first case against his brother which collapsed, testifying that during a walk in the rain in Dundalk, his brother had admitted he sexually abused his daughter.
He first reported the allegations to police in 2007 and made a second statement two years later, telling officers that his brother Liam had confessed to him in 2000.
Ms Atchison said there had been "a greater public interest in using him as a witness".
"There was more compelling public interest to us that this individual was a witness rather than to prosecute them."
Mr Larkin stated "the PPS correctly formed the view that the evidential test for prosecution could not be satisfied".
However, he highlighted transcripts of a 2006 police interview with Mr Adam's niece ine where she "was quite definite... that she had told (Gerry Adams) what her father had done to her".
Prosecutors had to prove Mr Adams knew the offence committed by his brother was "not merely indecent assault or gross indecency, but an offence which carried a maximum sentence of at least five years imprisonment".
The Attorney General said: "There was sufficient evidence that Gerry Adams was made aware of the nature of the abuse to merit a request being made by the PPS for further police investigation and clarification."
He went on to say "there was certainly sufficient evidence to suggest that the evidential test might well ultimately be met" and said "any doubt" could have been resolved by taking clarifying statements from ine and her mother "and, if necessary by asking the police to interview Gerry Adams under caution".
However, Ms Atchison said prosecutors have since spoken to ine Adams who declined to make a further statement, saying she did not want the matter to be pursued and was "happy with the outcome".
"ine was invited to indicate whether or not she wished to clarify previous statements she had made (but she) only wished to draw a line in the sand," the deputy director said.
"She said during the course of the meeting she had never wanted Gerry Adams prosecuted. She recognised he had tried to assist as best he could. Her focus was always on Liam Adams."
Mr Larkin said the PPS had breached its own code by ruling out prosecution on public interest grounds before fully exploring whether there was enough evidence.
But he said that the service should consider amending the Code for Prosecutors to allow a `public interest decision' to be taken first in exceptional cases, such as family sex abuse.
Yesterday Gerry Adams welcomed confirmation that the PPS will not prosecute him, reiterating: "I committed no offence."
"I have consistently maintained that my sole interest was in helping and supporting ine and that in these endeavours I did nothing wrong," he said.
"This has been a very difficult time for ine, her family and the wider Adams family."
However, Justice Committee chairman Alastair Ross said the Attorney General's report was "another deeply damaging" one for Public Prosecution Service, coming only a few weeks after the PPS was strongly criticised for its handling of the Maria Cahill case.
"The conclusions from the Attorney General also highlight further serious questions for both Gerry Adams and the Director of Public Prosecutions," he said.
"The serious issues raised about how the DPP has handled cases of serious sexual abuse have a detrimental impact on public confidence in our justice system."
Mr McGrory is to appear before the committee later this week.
