The arrest and release of two people in connection with the murder of a newborn baby 39 years ago, is reopening old wounds for communities in Co. Kerry.
A man in his 60s and a woman in her 50s were arrested on Thursday but later released without charge, and a file is being sent to the Director of Public Prosecutions.
It’s almost 39 years to the day since an unknown infant, later named Baby John, washed up on a beach near Cahersiveen in Co. Kerry.
The discovery set in train a chain of events that shook the country and that still echo down the years. Four decades later, the “Kerry Babies” case stands as a symbol of a time when attitudes towards sexuality, maternity and reproductive rights were rigid and often cruel.
The arrest and charging of a young woman, Joanne Hayes, along with her family, led ultimately to a tribunal of inquiry which, although it found Ms Hayes was not the mother of Baby John, largely exonerated investigating gardai of wrongdoing despite protests from the Hayes family.
It would take 35 years for Joanne Hayes to receive an official apology for her treatment by the State and by the Garda Síochána, which announced a new review into the death of Baby John in 2018.
Two years later, in 2020, after a court found that all findings of wrongdoing made against her and her family were unfounded and incorrect, the Hayes family were awarded €2.5 million in damages.
In 2021, Baby John’s remains were exhumed in order to acquire a better DNA sample.
While a furthering of the pursuit of justice for Baby John is overdue, it comes at an emotional cost for all involved in the original scandal.
The infamous “Kerry Babies” case is one of the darker chapters of our social history, and the details can scarcely be believed today. Especially by a younger generation which has grown up in a liberal society where unmarried mothers are no longer incarcerated, LGBT people can marry, and divorce and abortion are now allowed.
Dr Mary McAuliffe, historian and director of the UCD Gender Studies Programme, outlines the astonishing facts of the case, how her local community in North Kerry is reacting to the latest developments, and whether our legal system has fully absorbed the lessons learned.
Presented by Aideen Finnegan.
