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Thu 06 Jun 2004Motion to remove Judge CurtinThe die has been cast. For the first time in the history of the State, a motion has been tabled to remove a serving judge from office. What happens in the coming days and weeks will set the parameters of the relationship between the Government, the Oireachtas and the judiciary for a long time. Vigilance is required.The events leading up to this unprecedented action are exceptional. A judge was charged with a serious criminal offence, unrelated to his role in the administration of justice. The charge of possessing child pornography attracted especial public odium. And he was acquitted, not because the evidence was considered and rejected by a judge and jury, but because it was ruled inadmissible on a technicality, and never reached the court. Inevitably, this failed to remove the cloud of opprobrium now surrounding the judge. This was compounded by details of his personal life that emerged in the following days, suggesting a lack of judgment, to put it at its best, and his arrest on suspicion, as yet untried, of drink driving. It was obvious that he would not enjoy the confidence of the public if he returned to the bench.