Enoch Burke has again been physically removed from a courtroom by members of An Garda Síochana for interrupting proceedings before a High Court judge.
Mr Justice Brian O’Moore directed members of An Garda Síochana to physically remove Mr Burke, who was accompanied in Court 3 in the Four Courts by his parents Martina and Sean and his sister Ammi, after the teacher disrupted Monday’s call over of the chancery list.
The Garda were called on to take action after the judge refused to allow Mr Burke to raise an issue in part of his ongoing legal battle with Wilson’s Hospital School, which suspended and purportedly dismissed him from his job.
It was the second time in as many sittings of the court that the judge has had the get the Garda to intervene. On Friday Mr Burke and his sister were removed by gardaí also for interrupting that sitting of the court.
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On Monday, Mr Burke returned to the courtroom and sought to raise his concerns over the school’s application to correct certain statements made in a document it is relying on as part of its ongoing legal action against him.
He said he was seeking clarification on directions emailed to him by the judge on Friday afternoon, after he and his sister had been removed from the courtroom, regarding the school’s application to file corrective affidavits due to errors in statements sworn in the proceedings, on the school’s behalf.
In reply, the judge said Mr Burke’s case was not listed before the court, and the judge said that the Co Mayo teacher had neither informed the court registrar nor had obtained the proper court documents that would allow him to raise the matter with the court.
Mr Burke insisted on being heard, resulting in an exchange between the judge and the Burke family that became heated.
Mr Burke then refused to comply with the judge’s direction to not talk over him, and when the judge made it clear that the matter was not being heard the Burkes were highly critical of the court.
Mr Burke was warned several times by the judge that if he did not cease talking, he would be removed from the courtroom.
“You are not in charge of the list, " the judge told Mr Burke, who was reminded that was Mr Justice O’Moore’s job. Mr Burke persisted, and continued to speak over the judge. Eventually three members of An Garda Síochana physically removed Mr Burke from the courtroom.
Ammi Burke continued to loudly berate the judge, accusing him of treating the school “very differently” to her brother. The judge, noting that she is a qualified lawyer, reminded her that she “no right of audience.”
Mr Burke’s mother Martina Burke was also highly critical of Mr Justice O’Moore, and the gardaí.
“God knows about your wickedness,” she said, adding that the court was “corrupt”. The gardaí, she said, had no right to remove her son from the courtroom.
After Enoch Burke was removed by the gardaí, the other family members left the court of their own accord.
Mr Justice O’Moore then resumed the busy call over of the list, and apologised to all other parties present in the courtroom for the disruption caused to the administration of justice. It was “intolerable” that people should have to go through that regrettable experience, he added.
Mr Burke and the school have been engaged in a court battle after he claims he was wrongfully suspended, before being dismissed from his job last week, and his constitutional rights breached over his objections to referring to a student at the school who wishes to transition as ‘they’.
The school suspended, and the following a disciplinary process purportedly dismissed, Mr Burke due to the German and History teacher’s alleged misconduct.
Arising out of his refusal to comply with a High Court order granted last September, Mr Burke was jailed for 108 days for contempt. However, he has continued to attend at the school’s campus resulting in Mr Justice O’Moore imposing a €700 a day fine on him
Mr Burke’s appeal against various High Court decisions made against him is due to be heard by the Court of Appeal later this month.
In the most recent application before the court, lawyers for the school’s board of management said it wants to correct issues including statements that a meeting last year at Wilson’s Hospital concerning the wishes of a student who wishes to transition had been attended by that student’s parents, where a request was made that the student be referred to by a different pronoun and name than before.
This is incorrect, the school says as the meeting had only been attended by one of the student’s parents.
In addition, counsel said, that it had been stated that the meeting had also been attended by the school’s then principal Niamh McShane.
This was also inaccurate, the school said. Two other staff members were present for the duration of that meeting while principal, who was aware of the meeting was only in attendance for a brief period, the school claims.
Mr Burke has been informed of the school’s application to correct the inaccuracies before the matter returns before the court.