Publication
F/54620 (5 September 2022)
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 (“the Scheme”)
Fatal Injuries Application
Single Member Decision
The Deceased: [ ], who died on the [ ] aged [ ] years (“the Deceased”)
Applicant: [ ] (sister of the Deceased)
Application ref: F/54620
Date of Incident: [ ]
Date of receipt of application: [ ]
Decision outcome: No award.
The Deceased was shot at [ ] on [ ] and died as a result of his gunshot wounds. According to a Garda Report, furnished to the Tribunal and dated [ ], the Deceased had been shot multiple times at point blank range by [ ] at [ ] and died instantly from his injuries. The Gardaí also noted that investigation into the shooting of the Deceased was still live and that no person had yet been made amenable for this crime.
A fatal injuries application has been submitted by the Deceased’s sister, [ ], to the Tribunal. The completed application form was received by the Tribunal on [ ], which was 18 months after the incident and fatal injury of her brother, the subject matter of this application.
The Tribunal accepts that the Deceased died as a result of a crime of violence and that the matter has been and continues to be subject to investigation by the Gardaí.
Paragraph 20 (formerly paragraph 21) of the Scheme states:
“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…”
By reason of paragraph 20 of the Scheme all applications seeking compensation must be received by the Tribunal within three months of the date of the incident complained of, unless the Tribunal determines that the reason/s for the delay in making that application are such that exceptional treatment of that application is warranted and the Tribunal accepts that application for further consideration.
As noted above, this application was received over 18 months after the incident the subject matter of the application, and therefore received over 15 months after the three-month time period allowed, in normal course, pursuant to paragraph 20 of the Scheme, for submission of applications.
In order to assess whether the circumstances for the delay in submitting this application justifies exceptional treatment of it and thus amenable to further consideration, the Tribunal wrote to the Applicant requesting that she address the issue of delay in submitting her application to the Tribunal.
In response, received by the Tribunal on [ ], the Applicant stated that she had no knowledge of the Scheme or the Tribunal until she first became aware of it in late [ ] during counselling sessions she had been attending as a result of the death of her brother. The Applicant also stated that the first twelve months after her brother’s murder “were very traumatic, that most of it is a blur and to be honest it is still very surreal. I hope this explains any delays.”
The Tribunal accepts that the incident and death of the Applicant’s brother must have been very traumatic for the Applicant and for all of her family. Lack of knowledge of the Scheme however has never been considered by the Tribunal as a justifiable reason for delay in submission of an application and thus warranting exceptional treatment of that application.
In the Applicant’s case, considering the nature of the incident and resultant death of her brother, if the Applicant had made her application as soon as she had had knowledge of the Scheme, which she did in late [ ], the Tribunal may have been amenable to considering this application further. However, as this application was not received by the Tribunal until over six months after the Applicant had actual knowledge of the Scheme, the Tribunal does not consider that this application is amenable to further consideration and therefore must reject it on grounds of delay.
Accordingly, no further consideration of this application is made.
The Tribunal extends its sympathy to the Applicant and her family on the loss of her brother.
No award
Nora Pat Stewart
Dated: 5 September 2022