Dispute over whether Deirdre Morley’s medical records should be part of inquests into her children’s deaths

Seán McCárthaigh

Lawyers for a mother who killed her three children at their family home in Dublin almost five years ago have claimed an inquest into their deaths would be “inadequate and insufficient” if it did not examine the state of her mental health at the time of the tragic incident.

Counsel for Deirdre Morley, Fiona Gallagher BL, told a sitting of Dublin District Coroner’s Court that the inquest into her children’s deaths needed to call medical professionals who had treated her in the previous six months to give evidence rather than rely on expert witnesses.

The bodies of her three children – Conor (nine), Darragh (seven) and three-year-old Carla McGinley were discovered in their home at Parson’s Court, Newcastle, Co Dublin, on January 24th, 2020.

Ms Morley, a paediatric nurse, was subsequently found not guilty of their murder by reason of insanity following a trial at the Central Criminal Court in May 2021.

A postmortem showed the three young siblings had all died from suffocation.

The submission by Ms Morley’s legal representatives followed a ruling by coroner Myra Cullinane that evidence to be heard at the inquest about her mental health state would be given by two forensic consultant psychiatrists who had also given evidence at her criminal trial.

Dr Cullinane pointed out that she had asked both psychiatrists, Brenda Wright and Mary Davoren, to prepare new reports specifically for the inquest.

The coroner also stated that she had directed that all Ms Morley’s relevant medical records should be disclosed to all parties granted legal representation at the inquest.

The coroner noted that Ms Morley had changed her legal team since she had made a ruling on the scope of her inquiry on July 28th.

At the opening of the hearing on Friday, Ms Gallagher said her client’s position had arisen from the coroner’s determination that the state of Ms Morley’s mental health at the time of the deaths was material to her inquiry.

Ms Gallagher argued that relevant evidence should be allowed relating to the six months prior to the tragic circumstances, which would include Ms Morley’s admission to St Patrick’s Hospital in Dublin and treatment by mental health professionals in Clondalkin and Tallaght, as well as her GP.

She noted that the coroner had indicated through her decisions that the deaths of the three children had not occurred “in a vacuum.”

Ms Gallagher stressed that she was not seeking to question the adequacy of the treatment provided to Ms Morley.

Instead, the barrister said she wanted a full picture of Ms Morley’s mental health to be provided rather than having to rely on witnesses who were not her treating doctors but carrying out “a retrospective review of records.”

Ms Gallagher warned there would be “an evidential gap” if the doctors who treated her client were not called as witnesses.

She claimed the absence of such medical professionals from the inquest would represent an “unwarranted trammelling” of the evidence that the inquest should be examining.

Opposing the submission, counsel for consultant psychiatrist, Olivia Gibbons, Simon Mills SC, accused Ms Morley’s lawyers of engaging in “a collateral attack” on the coroner’s ruling.

Dr Mills pointed out that it had been accepted by Ms Morley during her criminal trial that she had only formed the intention that led to the deaths of her children in January 2020.

He noted that Ms Morley had also given evidence on that occasion that she had not told anyone about that intention.

He claimed the relevance of what was being proposed by Ms Morley’s legal representatives was “skeletal in the extreme with no meat put on the bones of that argument.”

Dr Mills observed that the coroner had properly directed that Ms Morley’s medical records should be available to all parties.

He claimed it would be peculiar for the coroner to reverse her position about the witness list in consideration of the rights of someone whose rights were below those of the deceased.

Dr Mills argued that any evidence from Dr Gibbons would not be contemporaneous or relevant to the death of the McGinley children.

He told the coroner that Ms Morley’s lawyers had not provided a single reason to justify their claim that a failure to call her treating doctors as witnesses would be “unreasonable and irrational.”

Counsel for the HSE, Sarah Corcoran BL, said she agreed with the submission made by Dr Mills.

Legal representatives of both Mr McGinley and St Patrick’s Hospital said they had no comment to make on the submissions.

Ms Gallagher replied that the consultant psychiatrists had previously noted that Ms Morley’s mental health had started to deteriorate in the middle of 2019.

She claimed Dr Mills was trying to back away from the coroner’s ruling that evidence should not be confined to the time immediately proximate to the deaths of the three children.

Ms Gallagher had pointed out that Ms Morley had filled out a form at an earlier stage in which she accepted that while she did not pose a risk to her children that she felt she was unable to provide care for them.

She insisted that her client’s treating doctors were the most appropriate witnesses to provide evidence about her mental health.

Dr Cullinane said she would consider the various submissions and would provide her ruling in writing to the parties early next week.

Speaking outside the hearing, Mr McGinley said he had seen fresh information in his wife’s medical records which had left him “deeply troubled.”

However, he said the inquest should not be “about blame or exoneration.”

“It should be about learning. It should be about engagement. It should be about an improved approach and better understanding,” said Mr McGinley.

He added: “It is my hope that Conor, Darragh and Carla’s inquests will lead to better care, diagnosis and treatment for patients, better control and management of pharmaceuticals.”

Mr McGinley continued: “It should show the need for co-parents to be informed, advised and supported – but most of all, it should lead to potential risks to children being greatly reduced, if not removed completely.”

He claimed such a collective goal could only be achieved by all parties working collaboratively with the aim of preventing similar tragedies.

“It is only in that way that something positive can possibly be taken from the devastating deaths of Conor, Darragh and Carla,” he concluded.

If you have been affected by any of the issues raised in this article, you can freephone the Samaritans 24 hours a day for confidential support at 116 123 or email jo@samaritans.org.

Alternatively, the contact information for a range of mental health supports is available at mentalhealthireland.ie/get-support.

In the case of an emergency, or if you or someone you know is at risk of suicide or self-harm, dial 999/112.