Sentencing Guidelines and Information Committee

The Functions

The functions of the Committee shall be to:

• prepare and submit to the Board for its review draft sentencing guidelines,

• prepare and submit to the Board for its review draft amendments to sentencing guidelines adopted by the Council,

• monitor the operation of sentencing guidelines,

• collate, in such manner as it considers appropriate, information on sentences imposed by the Courts, and

• disseminate that information from time to time to judges and persons other than judges.

The Committee

The Committee is comprised of the following 13 members:

• Eight judges nominated by the Chief Justice, which includes one judge from each of the 5 jurisdictions

• Five lay members appointed by Government.

The members of the Committee are as follows:

• Ms Justice Iseult O'Malley (Chair)
• Mr Justice John Edwards
• Mr Justice Tony Hunt
• Ms Justice Tara Burns
• Judge Keenan Johnson
• Judge Francis Comerford
• Judge John King
• Judge Paula Murphy
• Mr Vivian Geiran
• Dr Diarmuid Griffin
• Mr Michael O'Sullivan
• Ms Marianne O'Kane
• Dr Sinéad Ring

The Judicial Council Act provides that the Judicial Council nominate a date for establishment of this Committee at its first meeting. The date was fixed by the Council as the 30^th of June 2020 and the Committee held its first meeting on the 28^th of July 2020.