Publication
F/99627 (1 September 2023)
From Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme
Published on
Last updated on
From Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme
Published on
Last updated on
The Criminal Injuries Compensation Tribunal
In the matter of an application under the Scheme of Compensation for Personal Injuries Criminally Inflicted
Decision of a Single Member
Name of applicant: [ ] in respect of [ ] (Deceased)
Application number: F/99627
Date of death: [ ]
Date of application: [ ] (received by the Tribunal on [ ])
Decision outcome: Award withheld under para 13 of the Scheme.
1. Mr [ ] (‘the applicant’) has made a claim for compensation under the Scheme of Compensation for Personal Injuries Criminally Inflicted (‘the Scheme’). The application is made in relation to the death of his son, Mr [ ] (‘the deceased’), who at the time of his death was aged [ ] years of age.
2. The file includes a statement from a member of An Garda Síochána dated [ ]. The statement discloses that, on [ ], the deceased was fatally stabbed at [ ]. A letter from An Garda Síochána, dated [ ], to the Tribunal advised that, ‘for procedural reasons’, the criminal charges had been struck out. No further details were provided.
3. The applicant applied for an award under the Scheme in respect of the deceased’s death, together with the costs of the funeral for which a receipt in the sum of €9,000 was furnished. The file contained the deceased’s death certificate together with the birth certificates for statutory dependents.
4. At the time of his death, the deceased had [ ] previous convictions, for road traffic offences, public order offences and assault.
5. The applicant made an application for compensation to the Tribunal which was received by the Tribunal on [ ].
6. Paragraph 21 of the Scheme provides, ‘Applications should be made as soon as possible but, except in circumstances determined by the Tribunal to justify exceptional treatment, not later than three months after the event giving rise to the injury.’
7. The applicant’s application for compensation was not made promptly and, in any event, within three months of the event giving rise to the injury, in this instance the deceased’s death. If it had been, the application would have been lodged on or before [ ]. As such, the application was lodged with the Tribunal 7 months after the three-month time limit, as provided by paragraph 21, had expired.
8. I am therefore required to consider whether the circumstances, which resulted in the application being submitted outside the three-month time limit, can be said to justify exceptional treatment. The Tribunal was aware of the undoubtedly difficult and traumatic circumstances which attended the deceased’s death. Having carefully considered the matter, under the exceptional treatment provision, I exercise my discretion in the applicant’s favour and thereby admit the application for consideration under the Scheme.
9. On the evidence I am satisfied, in accordance with paragraph 1 of the Scheme, that the deceased’s death was directly attributable to a crime of violence.
10. Paragraph 13 of the Scheme provides as follows:
‘No compensation will be payable where the Tribunal is satisfied that the conduct of the victim, his character or his way of life make it inappropriate that he should be granted an award and the Tribunal may reduce the amount of an award where, in its opinion, it is appropriate to do so having regard to the conduct, character or way of life of the victim.’
11. I have carefully considered the deceased’s criminal record which was contained on file. The deceased was first convicted of an offence in [ ], when he was a juvenile aged [ ] years of age or thereabouts. As an adult, he amassed a significant number of convictions for road traffic and public order offences and assault. He was the subject of a range of sentences which included monetary penalties, suspended sentences of imprisonment and periods of immediate custody. His last conviction, for being drunk in a public place, was recorded in [ ], some [ ] before the deceased’s death.
12. Having carefully considered the deceased’s criminal record, I consider that, given its scope, it would be inappropriate to make an award of compensation under the Scheme.
13. Nil. Award withheld under paragraph 13 of the Scheme.
Conor Heaney
Chairperson, Criminal Injuries Compensation Tribunal
1 September 2023