Principles and prejudice: The erosion of fairness in admissibility determinations relating to historic child sexual abuse trials in Ireland

This thesis interrogates the construction of fairness to the accused in historic child sexual abuse trials in Ireland. The protection of fairness is a requirement of any trial that claims to adhere to the rule of law. Historic child sexual abuse trials, in which the charges relate to events that are alleged to have taken place decades previously, present serious challenges to the ability of the trial process to safeguard fairness. They are a litmus test of the courts’ commitment to fairness. The thesis finds that in historic abuse trials fairness to the accused has been significantly eroded and that therefore the Irish Courts have failed to respect the core of the rule of law in these most serious of prosecutions. The thesis scrutinises two bodies of case law, both of which deal with the issue of whether evidence should reach the jury. First, it examines the decisions on applications brought by defendants seeking to prohibit their trial. The courts hearing prohibition applications face a dilemma: how to ensure the defendant is not put at risk of an unfair trial, while at the same time recognising that delay in reporting is a defining feature of these cases. The thesis traces the development of the prohibition case law and tracks the shifting interpretations given to fairness by the courts. Second, the thesis examines what fairness means in the superior courts’ decisions regarding the admissibility of the following kinds of evidence, each of which presents particular challenges to the ability of the trial to safeguard fairness: evidence of multiple complainants; evidence of recovered memories and evidence of complainants’ therapeutic records. The thesis finds that in both bodies of case law the Irish courts have hollowed out the meaning of fairness. It makes proposals on how fairness might be placed at the heart of courts’ decisions on admissibility in historic abuse trials. The thesis concludes that the erosion of fairness in historic abuse trials is indicative of a move away from the liberal model of criminal justice. It cautions that unless fairness is prioritised in historic child sexual abuse trials the legitimacy of these trials and that of all Irish criminal trials will be contestable.

Comparison between weight loss of bends in a pneumatic conveyor and erosion rate obtained in a centrifugal erosion tester for the same materials

In order to find a link between results obtained from a laboratory erosion tester and tests carried out on a pneumatic conveyor, a comparison has been made between weight loss from bends on an industrial-scale pneumatic conveyor and erosion rates obtained in a small centrifugal erosion tester, for the same materials. Identical test conditions have been applied to both experiments so that comparable test results have been obtained. The erosion rate of mild steel commonly used as the wall material of conveyor pipes and pipe bends was determined individually on both test rigs. A relationship between weight loss from the bends and erosion rate determined from the tester has been developed. A discussion based on the results and their applicability to the prediction of wear in pneumatic conveyors concludes the paper.

Effect of particle concentration on erosion rate of mild steel bends in a pneumatic conveyor

Particle concentration is known as a main factor that affects erosion rate of pipe bends in pneumatic conveyors. With consideration of different bend radii, the effect of particle concentration on weight loss of mild steel bends has been investigated in an industrial scale test rig. Experimental results show that there was a significant reduction of the specific erosion rate for high particle concentrations. This reduction was considered to be as a result of the shielding effect during the particle impacts. An empirical model is given. Also a theoretical study of scaling on the shielding effect, and comparisons with some existing models, are presented. It is found that the reduction in specific erosion rate (relative to particle concentration) has a stronger relationship in conveying pipelines than has been found in the erosion tester.

Effect of bend orientation on life and puncture point location due to solid particle erosion of a high concentration flow in pneumatic conveyors

An investigation into predicting failure of pneumatic conveyor pipe bends due to hard solid particle impact erosion has been carried out on an industrial scale test rig. The bend puncture point locations may vary with many factors. However, bend orientation was suspected of being a main factor due to the biased particle distribution pattern of a high concentration flow. In this paper, puncture point locations have been studied with different pipe bend orientations and geometry (a solids loading ratio of 10 being used for the high concentration flow). Test results confirmed that the puncture point location is indeed most significantly influenced by the bend orientation (especially for a high concentration flow) due to the biased particle distribution and biased particle flux distribution.

Comparisons between “sand blast” and “centripetal effect accelerator” type erosion testers

There are two major types of erosion testing devices that are used throughout the world for quantifying particle impact erosion against a solid surface. The first of these uses pressurised air to accelerate abrasive particles through a nozzle so that they impinge upon a target specimen. The second adopts a rotating disc to accelerate abrasive particles using the centripetal effect so that they impinge upon a series of targets arranged around the periphery of the disc. This paper reports the findings of a collaborative project that was designed to compare the performance and results obtained from a rig of each of the two types mentioned above. The sand blast type rig was provided by The Department of Powder Science Technology (POSTEC) at The Telemark Technological Research and Development Centre (TEL-TEK), Porsgrunn, Norway while the centripetal effect accelerator was provided by The Wolfson Centre for Bulk Solids Handling Technology, University of Greenwich, London, UK. The test programme included tests against a wide range of materials that are commonly used in pneumatic handling facilities. (Pneumatic handling is a means of conveying and transporting powders and granular solid materials in bulk in industrial process plant, through pipelines using a gas as the carrier medium.) Olivine sand was used as the abrasive and it was projected against the test specimens at velocities and concentrations commensurate with those seen in pneumatic conveyors. In all instances the materials used in the test programme were taken from the same batch so that scatter of experimental results due to specimen variation was minimised. The paper contains a series of recommendations for erosion testing equipment. A discussion based on the results and their applicability to the prediction of wear in pneumatic conveyors concludes the paper.

A comparison of the gas-blast and centrifugal-accelerator erosion testers: The influence of particle dynamics

The gas-blast and centrifugal-accelerator testers are the two most commonly used erosion testers. An experimental and analytical study was made of the effect of particle characteristics (size, shape and concentration) on particle dynamics in each of these testers. Analysis showed that in the gas-blast tester both particle velocity and the dispersion angle of the particle jet were relatively sensitive to the particle characteristics. Particle characteristics, within the ranges studied, had little influence in the centrifugal accelerator tester. Consequently, during an erosion test, the range of particle velocities and dispersion angles in the gas-blast tester ismuch wider than in the centrifugal-accelerator tester. It was concluded that the centrifugal-accelerator tester gave closer control of the important erosion test parameters and therefore more consistent erosion test measurements. However, one drawback of the centrifugal-accelerator tester is the need to account for erosion effects associated with the impact of rotating particles, an inherent feature of this tester.