Ireland · County Donegal
Frank Shortt: wrongly convicted, exonerated
Convicted of Knowingly allowing the sale of drugs at his nightclub in Inishowen.
Convicted1995
SentenceThree years imprisonment
Years in prison2.25
Exonerated31 July 2002
How the conviction was overturnedCourt of appeal declared a miscarriage of justice after finding two gardaí deliberately invented evidence and concealed it, following the quashing of the conviction without opposition from the DPP in November 2000, Court of Criminal Appeal1,2,3
What went wrong
- Official misconduct, with the court finding that two gardaí consciously and deliberately invented evidence and concealed that fact
- Suppression of material by gardaí
From conviction to exoneration
- Convicted and sentenced to three years, of which he served 27 months.2,3
- His conviction was quashed without opposition from the Director of Public Prosecutions.1,3
- The Court of Criminal Appeal declared that he was the victim of a miscarriage of justice.1,3
- The Supreme Court awarded him increased damages of 4.7 million euro.2
- Died at Letterkenny University Hospital aged 88.2
Compensation
4.7 million euro in damages awarded by the Supreme Court in March 2007
Today
Conviction quashed in 2000 and declared a miscarriage of justice in 2002. He died in July 2023.
Sources
- RTÉ News, Court declares miscarriage of justice in Shortt case (31 July 2002)
- The Irish Times, Businessman wrongly convicted on drugs charges dies (15 July 2023)
- The Irish Times, Donegal nightclub owner Shortt wins miscarriage of justice case (31 July 2002)