Order granted for Enoch Burke’s remote attendance at court hearing from prison
High Court Reporters
Jailed schoolteacher Enoch Burke will attend the High Court on Friday by video link from prison.
The High Court on Thursday granted an order allowing Enoch Burke to attend court remotely when a judgment will be delivered relating to his repeated breach of court orders.
Mr Justice Brian Cregan last week ordered that Mr Burke be imprisoned for his contempt of court orders directing him not to trespass at Wilson’s Hospital School, where he previously taught German and history.
Mr Burke was on Tuesday arrested by gardaí at the Co Westmeath school and committed to Mountjoy Prison.
Mr Burke is now serving his fourth term in prison, having already spent more than 500 days over three years incarcerated arising from his contempt of the court orders.
Mr Justice Cregan is on Friday due to deliver a second judgment relating to other matters pertaining to Mr Burke’s breach of orders, including the potential seizing of cars that were used to drive him onto the school grounds.
In the High Court on Thursday, barrister Rosemary Mallon, appearing for the board of Wilson’s Hospital School, informed Mr Justice Cregan that Mr Burke had been arrested and returned to Mountjoy.
Ms Mallon said she was making an application for Mr Burke to be produced at Friday’s hearing, and said that he could attend virtually.
The judge made the order allowing Mr Burke to attend remotely by videolink.
Mr Burke was a teacher at the school until his suspension three years ago, arising from his behaviour in reaction to a direction from the then principal to address a transitioning student with they/them pronouns.
Soon after Mr Burke’s suspension, the school obtained an order restraining his attendance at the school premises. Mr Burke has continually breached this order.
Mr Burke has claimed his jailing is over his standing up for his Christian beliefs under the Constitution.
In addition to being jailed, several judges of the High Court have imposed other penalties on Mr Burke over his contempt of orders, including fines. Mr Burke currently owes in excess of €225,000 in fines to the Courts Office.
In his judgment last week, Mr Justice Cregan said it served no useful purpose to impose further fines on him because he had continued to breach the court orders and had not voluntarily paid a euro towards the fines.
Other measures to prevent Mr Burke’s trespassing at the school had also failed, the judge noted.
“There is now, in my view, no longer any option left to enforce the order of the court other than to imprison Mr Burke again for contempt of court for repeated and flagrant breaches of the court order,” he said.
The judge also said he intended to invoke criminal contempt of court. This type of contempt differs from civil contempt, and is contempt for disrupting the court.
He asked that the Attorney General also bring criminal contempt proceedings against other members of the family – his mother Martina, his brother Isaac and sister Ammi – as well as against Enoch himself.
