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20th Jan 2022

Deirdre Morley issues medical negligence action against HSE and hospital

Katy Brennan

Andrew McGinley has also issued medical negligence actions.

Deirdre Morley has issued a medical negligence action in the High Court against the HSE, St. Patrick’s hospital, and a consultant psychiatrist, in relation to her care, The Independent reports.

Ms. Morley was charged with killing her three children – nine-year-old Conor, seven-year-old Darragh and three-year-old Carla – at their home in January 2020.

After the murders, she was diagnosed with a severe psychotic depressive illness. She was found not guilty by reason of insanity.

Andrew McGinley, the father of the children and Ms. Morley’s husband, has filed a separate action against the same defendants.

“This is a process I would much rather not be taking. I just want to understand why my children died,” he told The Independent.

The papers were lodged on Wednesday.

Following his wife’s trial, Mr. McGinley raised several concerns and called for an investigation into his wife’s diagnosis and treatment prior to the tragic event. He said that his concerns only increased after he was granted access to her medical files in September.

Although Mr. McGinley and Ms. Morley have two separate legal teams, it is thought their cases may run simultaneously as they involve the same defendants and will rely on similar material, The Independent reports.

Mr. McGinley previously said that he was “appalled” that he was not made aware of the extent of his wife’s mental illness.

He said that if the HSE had kept him informed of his wife’s mental state and involved him in her treatment, his three children “would still be alive today”.

Since the tragedy, he has been campaigning for family members to be allowed to have involvement in the treatment of a loved one’s mental illness.

Saturday will be the second year anniversary of the death of the three children.