Elderly man accused of multiple sexual offences is fit to be tried

Whether accused is fit to be tried - in July 2014, Sheehan J held on the basis of expert evidence that accused was fit to be tried - court will not act as appellant court but will consider matters that have arisen since the previous application - 18 charges of rape and 56 charges of sexual assault - alleged offences occurred between 2001 and 2006 - victims ranged from 4 to 10 when alleged offences occurred - Section 4 of the Criminal Law (Insanity) Act 2006 - accused person shall be deemed unfit to be tried if he or she is unable by reason of mental disorder to understand the nature or course of the proceedings so as to: (a) plead to the charge; (b) instruct a legal representative; (c) elect for a trial by jury; (d) make a proper defence; (e) challenge a juror to whom he or she might wish to object; (f) understand the evidence - question shall be determined by the judge concerned sitting alone - onus of proof rests on the defence - balance of probabilities - case came for trial on the 4th March, 2013 - committed on 15th March, 2013 to the Central Mental Hospital for inpatient treatment - reviewed on three occasions by Mental Health (Criminal Law) Review Board (herein ‘Review Board’) - ultimately Review Board determined that accused was fit to be tried - accused assessed by medical experts over a period of over 50 weeks - experts concluded that he was exaggerating symptoms in order to avoid trial - accused capable of understanding nature of proceedings, instructing solicitor and entering plea - court prefers aforesaid opinion over that of separate expert who assessed accused in two interviews over three hours - court finds that accused is fit to be tried - trial should go ahead.